Hacks on OEM BIOS Activation Confirmed
Microsoft has confirmed the presence of hacks on Windows Vista activation by either editing the BIOS directly to make it an OEM BIOS or running a software which would fool Windows Vista that the computer is OEM licensed.
As discussed on MSDN, editing the BIOS directly is risk and dangerous which could be done easily but would not be commercialized fast enough. I agree on this one and I believe only a small number might be able to pull this off which would not be enough to create a revenue hole for Microsoft. These select few are better left it their own spaces together with their stolen Windows Vista rights.
The second approach is running a software that would fool Windows Vista that it is running on OEM license. This can be pulled off easily and spread commercially faster than the first version; however, this kind of attack could easily be detected and rejected by Microsoft through agents the software giant could deploy alongside Windows Vista.
In an excerpt of Microsoft announcement.
Reported OEM BIOS Hacks
I know many of you are aware of reports of hacks that attempt to exploit our OEM BIOS based activation. We’re aware of this type of hack and I wanted to take a minute to describe how these work and how we plan to respond.
First, what is OEM BIOS based activation?
Here’s a little more information on how OEM BIOS based activation works. This form of product activation is also known as OEM Activation or just OA, which is how Microsoft refers to it and how I will refer to it in this post. Back at the launch of Windows XP when Microsoft introduced Windows Product Activation, we recognized that as easy as end-user activation is, it still represented an extra step. In an effort to reduce the impact of even that extra step but maintain the overall effectiveness of product activation, Microsoft worked with OEMs to develop an implementation that would work best for them and their customers while keeping the goals of product activation clearly in focus. As we looked to develop a solution, it was important to ensure that product activation technology could still deliver an acceptable degree of protection, while at the same time, reduce the need for an extra step by the end user. A couple of key factors stand out as enabling the OA 1.0 solution that was delivered in Windows XP.
Large OEMs tend to ship large numbers of PCs with Windows preinstalled. They also have the ability during their manufacturing processes to identify systems that will ship with Windows pre-installed.
Also, because of the direct relationship Microsoft has with those OEMS, the company has a higher degree of confidence that a genuine COA will be attached to each PC and that there will be accurate reporting of the number of units shipped preinstalled with Microsoft Windows.
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POSTED IN: Microsoft, Windows Vista, Windows XP
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