A federal court this week killed a class action suit alleging that Microsoft's Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) was forced on consumers and then used to collect and store confidential information. WGA was introduced in 2006 as piracy-fighting software. The program verifies that any Windows software is licensed and, if it isn't, tells the user that he "may be a victim of software counterfeiting." WGA also prevents machines with non-valid software from receiving any security updates that aren't deemed "critical."
The suit, which has been festering since 2006, alleged that Microsoft called WGA a critical security update in an effort to get consumers to download it. The company then used the program to collect confidential information from users' computers, and stored that data on central servers.
Specifically, the suit said that WGA collects and stores a given computer's IP address, settings and language, and BIOS interface data and, more disturbingly, that the program "can be modified remotely to collect additional information at Microsoft's initiation."
The suit pointed to messages relayed via Windows Update, starting in June 2006, that put WGA in the "high priority" category of security updates. The program automatically installed WGA on most machines. Shortly after the suit was filed, Microsoft reduced the frequency with which WGA ran its checks. Originally, the program verified software every time a computer was turned on. Now it conducts periodic checks.
Judge Richard Jones' ruling was the final nail in the coffin of a case that has been losing steam for some time. Last month, the plaintiffs withdrew all class-action allegations except breach of contract, noting that an appeal on that count is pending.
Making matters worse for the plaintiffs, Judge Jones held them liable for Microsoft's legal fees, if Microsoft chooses to pursue them. Jones disputed the plaintiffs' contention that the appeal was a "no harm, no foul" situation. "[T]he 'harm' was irreversibly inflicted when Plaintiffs' motion required Microsoft to prepare a defense," he wrote.
Whether Microsoft pursues legal fees is anybody's guess, but the company has taken a hard line against the suit thus far. Last year, in opposing class certification, a spokesman called the allegations not only "outrageously fictional," but from an "alternate universe."
The company is no doubt happy with the ruling. In a filing last year, it fretted that the class was seeking "hundreds of millions of dollars on behalf of tens of millions of persons for twelve forms of alleged damages."
WGA has been unpopular for other reasons as well. The program has been dogged by complaints that it identifies genuine Windows software as pirated, thereby preventing security updates from being downloaded and installed.
