Microsoft goes after pirates who allegedly activated 'thousands of copies' of Windows, Office

Microsoft has asked a federal judge permission to serve Comcast with a subpoena to identify alleged software pirates who have activated thousands of copies of Windows 7 and Office 2013 using stolen or abused codes, according to court filings.

"For an unknown period of time -- but for at least the past three years -- the Infringing IP Address has been used to activate thousands of Microsoft product keys," Microsoft said in a March 4 motion to a Seattle federal court.

Those keys had been stolen from the company's supply chain, used more times than legal, were actually keys assigned to someone else or were activated outside the geographic region they were intended for.

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