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Simple. It's not illegal to download the OS from a torrent. I mean, what if I have my own key, but lost the CD? I can still download a CD as a backup. The difference between the pirated edition of an OS and a genuine edition is how you enter the license.
A genuine key would have input it during installation or in System Properties after installation. A pirated version like a Loader or Activator, automatically creates a backup of the BIOS and boot.ini and other files, while then inputing a serial key randomly generated from an existing key that has not been used yet.
Obviously if you've downloaded an OS through a torrent or another file sharing site its pirated. Buy directly from trusted dealers, as in Microsoft, Dell...so on so on.