Software audits on up, claims Fast

Customer survey reveals the number of software audits has doubled in past year

Fast's research suggest software audits are becoming more commonplace

The number of UK firms forced to undergo software audits by vendors has almost doubled in the past year, according to research by Fast.

According to the software asset management vendor’s latest annual customer survey, 55 per cent of respondents had been subjected to an audit over the past 12 months - up from 30 per cent last year.

Of the 160 IT managers and directors that took part in the survey, 66 per cent said licence compliance was extremely important to their organisation.

Identifying current software assets and licensing requirements also polled highly, with 55 per cent citing it as their biggest business challenge.

Matt Barnes, managing director at Fast, said with so many software publishers clamping down on unlicensed software users, firms were right to be concerned.

“With many businesses now adopting software-as-a-service, cloud and virtualisation, the licensing requirements of businesses are not only changing but becoming more complex," he said.

“This increase reflects the message that the legal implications of being non-compliant are greater than ever."