Software Distributor Sentenced To 22 Months in Prison for Conspiracy to Traffic in Illicit Microsoft Certificates of Authenticity

Tampa, FL - Heidi Richards (52, Brandon) has been sentenced to 22 months in federal prison after a jury found her guilty of conspiring to traffic in illicit Microsoft certificate of authenticity (COA) labels. The Court also ordered Richards to pay a $50,000 fine. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Richards, doing business as Trinity Software Distribution, paid co-conspirators millions of dollars for thousands of genuine, standalone Microsoft COA labels at prices significantly lower than the retail price of the associated software. Richards and her employees harvested product key codes from the labels, then sold them in bulk to her customers. Federal law prohibits the trafficking of standalone COA labels separate from the software programs they were intended to accompany.

COA labels authenticate Microsoft software, assist customers in identifying genuine software, and bear security features intended to dissuade counterfeit duplication. There is an illicit, secondary market for COA labels because they bear product key codes used to activate Microsoft software. COA labels are not to be sold separately from the license and hardware that they are intended to accompany, and they hold no independent commercial value.

Homeland Security Investigations (Kansas City Field Office) investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Risha Asokan of the Middle District of Florida and Trial Attorney Jared Hosid of the Justice Department's Computer Crime & Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) prosecuted the case.

CCIPS investigates and prosecutes cybercrime in coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, often with assistance from the private sector. Since 2020, CCIPS has secured the conviction of over 180 cybercriminals, and court orders for the return of over $350 million in victim funds.