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John Lovelock, director general of FAST, said that companies and organisations are increasingly aware of the legal implications of using unlicensed software, but added that he does not expect to see the practice end any time soon.

'When you consider that the creative industries as a whole employ over two million people and contribute over £11.4 billion to our balance of trade, you can appreciate the real threat of piracy and counterfeiting on a global scale and the impact it's having on our world economy,' Lovelock said.

'While globalisation makes it extremely difficult to enforce intellectual property rights across borders, we need to take a strong stance in every country to crack down hard on it and bring this vital trade back into our economy,' he added.

July's figure was boosted by a £300,000 payment by an unnamed US chemical transportation organisation.