Anti-piracy update scandal rolls on
A federal judge has let Microsoft off the hook over
allegations that it mislead consumers when it fed them anti-piracy software
under the auspices of a critical security update. U.S. District
Court Judge Richard Jones denied several motions by the plaintiffs, including
one that would have let them modify their complaint a third time.
The move means that Microsoft will not be faced with a
class action that could have cost it millions. The 42 month old case was based around Redmond labeling
its Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) software as a critical security
update. The case claimed that Redmond did not tell users that WGA
collected information from their PCs, then frequently "phoned home"
that data to Microsoft's servers.
After an outcry Microsoft reduced the number of times
that WGA phoned home but still relies on
WGA, and its successor, Windows Activation Technologies (WAT), to snoop out pirated Windows
copies. If the software finds a dodgy copy it posts nagging messages.
Microsoft opposed the class-action certification last
September, at the time calling the lawsuit "fictional,"
"demonstrably false" and from an "alternate universe."
The plaintiffs withdrew most, but not all, of their class
action allegations.Judge Jones said that all class allegations had to be
withdrawn because they "need not be included for appellate purposes and
would create unnecessary confusion if they were included."
He said that Redmond could demand compensation for the
money it spent contesting the class-action charges.