Microsoft Corp has filed 63 lawsuits in a dozen countries, to target sellers of bogus copies of Windows XP, Microsoft Office and other software via online auction sites. The company said it has been receiving complaints from unsuspecting customers having been stung after buying fake discounted Microsoft software and "illicit software components" burned onto a CD.

The fake software is being sold under a fabricated marketing program called 'Blue Edition' - a scam that tempts buyers with ultra-low prices. Among the online auction sites that had hosted sales of counterfeit Windows were big names like Amazon. com, Craigslist, eBay, MySpace and Ubid. com.

Matt Lundy, a senior attorney with Microsoft's anti-piracy team, said consumers who report being duped by counterfeit software are "an integral part" of Microsoft's anti-piracy efforts, as their complaints helped identify the scam in countries like Argentina, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the US and the UK.

In fact, most of the scams came to Microsoft's attention via its various counterfeit reporting mechanisms, which include a telephone hotline, a Web-based form and the company's Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) program.

Microsoft advises buyers to go to its piracy site to learn how to guard against fake software. The company said that if a deal seems too good to be true, it most certainly is. In addition, customers should look for a Certificate of Authenticity (COA) that identifies genuine products; however, it is just a label and not a software license.

Lundy said: "Consumers should be aware that there are pirates throughout the world trying to sell you counterfeit software. And the counterfeiters are getting bolder in their schemes."