Gizmo Cafe Blog

AACS Encryption Cracked

The AACS (Advanced Access Content Systems) once said its DRM (Digital Rights Management) was unbreakable. The content protection DRM is designed to prevent movies on HD DVD (and Blu-ray) from being backed up. Well, it only took a hacker named muslix64 on the Doom9 boards about eight days. 

The current program from muslix64 is called BackupHDDVD.99 can be downloaded on the Doom9 Forums. It’ll allow you to backup the contents of your HD DVD movie disk, provided you have an encryption key. Keys for only a few movies released to HD DVD are available on the forums but there are no instructions as to how to obtain one from other movies.

Muslix64 is currently working on BackupHDDVD V1.00 which should be able to do a full backup of any HD DVD film and will provide encryption keys.
After all that fanfare about a
unbreakable code developed by the AACS and it gets cracked in eight days. Good work muslix64. He says he did it because he was using the Xbox360’s HD DVD add on and felt the inability for the system to playback HD DVD movies on his PC constituted unfair use. So, taking matters into his own hands he cracked it by himself. A hero if ever there was one.

Now I’m interested to see someone crack those extra layers of encryption on Blu-ray above and beyond the AACS’s mandated DRM.

Published Thursday, December 28, 2006 12:24 PM by Wayde

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HD-DVD code is cracked « tekel said:

December 28, 2006 6:49 PM
 

BrightStar said:

Well, in my opinion, If the PRICE of DVD / HD-DVD / Blu-Ray disc etc movies/medias were not so HIGH, then, probably, this WAVE could have been reduced a bit. But MAIN POINT here is that, ULTIMATELY someone will definitely crack, whatever ENCRYPTION or Secured System is used or placed, even if it were built with billions of dollars, cause, its in our nature to understand/decrypt everything as much closely as possible. Movie & other industries' developers who developed the previous super encryption "CSS" for DVD, was also got broken/hacked. Why they are thinking it will not be same again, i wonder. Encryption WILL NOT and CANNOT stop people from stop watching movies or stop listening to music. It is not the main factor in this case. Encryption or Secured system, can only make it LITTLE HARDER, thats the only thing which will/can be achived. When movies can be sold with a PRICE TAG which is AFFORDABLE to a POOR PERSON, then, probably, only then, hacking might stop. "Encryption" will still be broken even then, if not by at least, just for FUN or to show ACHIEVEMENT. Amount of PROFIT from selling these medias need to be in a range, for example, in between 1% to 33%, then that is JUSTIFIED and REASONABLE. Of course this limit will VARY on different FACTORS, but should stay CLOSE. But when profit goes beyond that invincible border of within reasonable, then that is INJUSTICE, which results in these hacking/DECRYPTION.
December 30, 2006 3:27 PM
 

BrightStar said:

Well, in my opinion, If the PRICE of DVD / HD-DVD / Blu-Ray disc etc movies/medias were not so HIGH, then, probably, this WAVE could have been reduced a bit. But MAIN POINT here is that, ULTIMATELY someone will definitely crack, whatever ENCRYPTION or Secured System is used or placed, even if it were built with billions of dollars, cause, its in our nature to understand/decrypt everything as much closely as possible. Movie & other industries' developers who developed the previous super encryption "CSS" for DVD, was also got broken/hacked. Why they are thinking it will not be same again, i wonder. Encryption WILL NOT and CANNOT stop people from stop watching movies or stop listening to music. It is not the main factor in this case. Encryption or Secured system, can only make it LITTLE HARDER, thats the only thing which will/can be achived, and expected. When movies can be sold with a PRICE TAG which is AFFORDABLE to a POOR PERSON, then, probably, only then, hacking might stop. "Encryption" will still be broken even then, if not by at least, just for FUN or to show ACHIEVEMENT. Amount of PROFIT from selling these medias need to be in a range, for example, in between 1% to 33%, then that will be JUSTIFIED and REASONABLE. Of course this limit will VARY on different FACTORS, but should stay CLOSE. But when profit goes beyond that invincible border of within reasonable, then that is INJUSTICE, which results in these hacking/DECRYPTION. ~BrightStar.
December 31, 2006 1:28
 

Hammer Time said:

I say lets crack the DRM with a sledge. Works on skulls AND DRM encryption.
January 1, 2007 4:24 PM
 

Gizmo Cafe Blog said:

In a world where no DRM is sacred - HD DVD was first to fall to Muslix64 and the BackupHDDVD utility....
January 25, 2007 9:49

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About Wayde

Wayde’s super power is fixing electronics by smacking them. Fixing his way through college he repaired TVs - monitors, stereos and even a pinball machine. He was finally defeated by arch nemesis - Planned Obsolescence in issue #280 and now enjoys super-hero retirement as an editor and gadget blogger.