PETALING JAYA, MALAYSIA: From today, those with pirated copies of the Windows XP Professional operating system in their computers that are Internet-capable could find their screens going black and the icons vanishing as Microsoft Corp gets tough.

There are 8.6 million users of Windows XP Pro in Malaysia and about three million are expected to suffer the "blackouts", according to Microsoft Malaysia.

To continue working, users will need to reset the machine's desktop background. All will return to normal, but only for 60 minutes before another blackout occurs.

The only "cure" is to get a licensed copy of the operating system from a Microsoft reseller or going online at www.microsoft. com/malaysia/genuine. Each licence costs RM580.

The initiative is part of Microsoft's anti-piracy campaign, dubbed Windows Genuine Advantage, aimed at educating users on the benefits of using genuine software, Microsoft Malaysia client business group director K.T. Ng told The Star yesterday.