Apple Computer has closed a security hole that allowed an underground program to tap into its iTunes Music Store and purchase songs stripped of antipiracy protections.
The PyMusique software, created by a trio of independent programmers online, emerged last week as a copy protection-free back door into the popular iTunes store. One of the creators was Jon Johansen, the Norwegian programmer responsible for releasing DVD-copying software in 1999. Apple released a statement Monday saying the problem had been fixed, and that some iTunes customers would need to upgrade their software.
"The security hole in the iTunes Music Store which was recently exploited has been closed, and as a consequence the iTunes Music Store will now sell music only to customers using iTunes version 4.7," the company said in a statement. Like all other digital music companies, Apple has been dealing continually with hackers intent on finding ways around the antipiracy protections that are added to songs as they are sold online.
News source: C|Net News.com
The PyMusique software, created by a trio of independent programmers online, emerged last week as a copy protection-free back door into the popular iTunes store. One of the creators was Jon Johansen, the Norwegian programmer responsible for releasing DVD-copying software in 1999. Apple released a statement Monday saying the problem had been fixed, and that some iTunes customers would need to upgrade their software.
"The security hole in the iTunes Music Store which was recently exploited has been closed, and as a consequence the iTunes Music Store will now sell music only to customers using iTunes version 4.7," the company said in a statement. Like all other digital music companies, Apple has been dealing continually with hackers intent on finding ways around the antipiracy protections that are added to songs as they are sold online.
News source: C|Net News.com
However, he did note that developers are expecting Microsoft to update the prototype PowerMac-based Xenon kits with more advanced hardware "pretty much any day now" - an important step for the company, since it's still planning to launch the next-generation Xbox before the end of the year, and industry rumours suggest that it may even have recently pulled the launch schedule forward by several weeks.
Sony plans to show the next-generation PlayStation off in public for the first time at its pre-E3 conference in Los Angeles in May, where it will almost certainly debut within a few hours of the public unveilings of Nintendo's Revolution and Microsoft's next-gen Xbox.
However, the system - which is based on a new chip called Cell, which was co-developed by IBM and Sony, and an NVIDIA graphics board - is not expected to start shipping to consumers until the second quarter of 2006 at the earliest.
the government and corporations tell you otherwise.
It's a stupid myth to think that hacker is the "good size" of the crackers (the baddass). In fact to have a firewall in any pc is necesary cause hackers and script kiddies and not cause crackers. Hackers are good ONLY if they are whitehat.
Hackers is about to enter a system, such to enter in a pc and to delete all info. Crackers is about to break some protection, such : keygen, crack (
Usually crackers reffers themself like hackers, cause hackers have more glamour and this give more popularity.
Instead of letting this knowledge stay as "underground" knowledge that's not public, he publicized it, released the source, and Apple could fix it. I'd say it's better for Apple to have some songs purchased DRM-free during a day or three than have god knows how many over a long period of time by hackers. At least Apple chose to bury the suing axe this time.
What has the PC world learned from this lesson?
What has the PC world learned from this lesson?
Last edited by 9953 on 22 Mar 2005 - 19:16
The last good program I had seen took the 'private key' from any iPod and used that to remove the DRM from ANY song (didn't matter if you bought it or not).
If I am not mistaken you can just set the windows recording device to wav out and record from any recording software without the use of any cables.
I have an album in MP3 format encoded at 192kbps. I want to decrease the file size, so I take the MP3s and reencode them to 128kbps MP3. Someone else has the CD, and therefore access to the uncompressed tracks, and they rip the CD to 128kbps MP3. I know that 128kbps MP3s aren't known for their incredible sound quality, but do you really believe that there will be no noticeable difference between the two? Before you answer, maybe you should try this experiment and let me know how it works out. For many people, this would be fine, but for me personally, quality is of paramount importance, and a second generation reencode just isn't acceptable. The loss of quality over analog media (ie dubbing video cassettes) was a lot more dramatic, but the principle is very much the same.
If you're happy with second gen reencodes, power to you, though I might suggest that you invest in a better pair of speakers or headphones if you really can't tell the difference. For me, it's quite simply not an acceptable option.
google it
Gee I wonder why. I can't understand why anyone would want to be able to play the music they purchased using something other then itunes and one computer.
This makes my angry as I have paid for them. You would not except a cd to be only playable on three machines!
Two things: 1. you should have de-authorized the computer before you re-installed it. There is a menu option in iTunes to do this. 2. You can contact iTunes customer service, explain the situation to them, and they will reset your authorizations for you.
Well that's ok then. Obviously the people actually paying for the music are the ones that they should be worried about.
the DRM cleaners get updated a LOT faster than iTunes does.
Please try again.
But DRM is just plain wrong. If you pay to download a song you should be able to use or copy it for your own personal use any way you see fit.
PCs used to be about giving us control and the ability to do many incredible things... We controlled our own files. But the trend seems to be our computers taking control away from us. Instead of empowering us, our computers are now limiting us. If we pay money to a music company for the right to a licensed copy of a song then that is our own file and we should be able to burn, copy, or play it however we want as often as we want on whatever porogram we want with no restrictions (as long as its for personal use).
DRM strips consumers of our own rights. And being that hackers/crackers can find their way around this kind of crap, it really doens't do much for piracy anyway.
I'm all for measures to decrease piracy but DRM is not one of them.
...C_Guy
Source: News.com
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