"...one of the things that we find is that Microsoft is viewed as the big, bad organisation — but they've actually got some good corporate social responsibility. If you're a charity or an educational institution, you pay pence in the pound for the licence, compared to what a major bank might pay."

Det Cons Christopher Creagh, of the Metropolitan Police, said: "This is the first instance of a web-rage attack." Det Sgt Jean-Marc Bazzoni, of Essex Police, added the case demonstrates the importance of protecting one's identity on the internet. "Mr Jones had posted pictures of his family on the web and had chatted to Gibbons on an audio link," he said. "It demonstrates how easily other users can put two and two together and also shows how children could also find themselves in danger."