Vista brute force activation hack is a hoax?

Author: Tim Smalley
Published: 5th March 2007
Comments (9) Stumble
Vista brute force activation hack is a hoax?

Vista's product activation servers aren't compromised yet, but you can generate valid product keys with the script.

The Vista brute force activation hack that turned up last week may turn out to be a hoax after the creator claimed that the hack was nothing more than a scam.

"Fact is the brute force keygen is a joke, i [sic] never intended for it to work. I have never gotten it to work, everyone should stop using it! Everyone who said they got a key a [sic] probably lying or mistaken!" said the creator.

However, there is a twist... Many sites, including ourselves, reported that the script was an activation keygen hack. In actual fact, it's a script capable of generating valid product keys and you've still got to get past the Microsoft activation servers.

ZDNet blogger Adrian Kingsley-Hughes claims that it's not quite a cut and dry hoax, as he has been able to generate keys that look like typical Vista keys. While he hasn't used the generated keys to activate his copy of Windows Vista, he believes that the incident may yield some interest in among the hacking / cracking circles.

If product keys can easily be created, there's a chance that activation keys can be too. If and when hackers manage to create activation keys, they're going to have to fool Microsoft's activation servers - who knows how long that's going to take. I'd guess that the chances of that happening aren't favourable to the hackers, and if Microsoft's servers were to be compromised, you can bet that there would be a fix in double time.

Discuss in the forums
Quote Flibblebot 5th March 2007, 11:37
Missing square bracket around the "nothing more than a scam" link.

So are we to understand that Microsoft's activation servers have a record of every key that's been printed on a box? If so, surely it'll be impossible to crack, unless you manage to generate a key that hasn't been sold or installed yet.
Quote mclean007 5th March 2007, 11:48
Quote:
Originally Posted by Flibblebot
Missing square bracket around the "nothing more than a scam" link.

So are we to understand that Microsoft's activation servers have a record of every key that's been printed on a box? If so, surely it'll be impossible to crack, unless you manage to generate a key that hasn't been sold or installed yet.
Or you use your cameraphone to swipe the key from a box on the shelf in PC World.
Quote dire_wolf 5th March 2007, 11:56
LOL, they printed the codes on the outside of the boxes? that's just asking for hassle
Quote DriftCarl 5th March 2007, 12:55
maybe a hoax but in reality its easier to crack. the new paradox crack works perfectly in about 2 minutes fully activated and I imagine, from reading the documentation that comes with it, microsoft is gonna have a hard time blocking it.
Quote DarkLord7854 5th March 2007, 13:03
Quote:

All the stores I've been to here don't display the actual boxes, you either take a piece of paper, or a carbox label (which is ridiculously big) and you bring it to the cashier, and then they give it to you there.
That's a tad stupid to put the activation code on the outside.

Reminds me of going to Best Buy, opening the CSS box to "check if everything is there," copying the key, and leaving
Quote randosome 5th March 2007, 16:50
nicking keys off the shelves isnt new, people have been doing it for a long time

but printing the key on the outside of the box is just stupid
Quote knowyourenemy 5th March 2007, 17:31
Don't forget to mention the music. I love the new song on Paradox's app.
Quote Buzzons 5th March 2007, 22:03
keygens are nout new, as are activation work arounds (such as Activate by phone - which most apps use if pirated.)

the only down side for pirates is that MS can change how it activates its products at will - different types of hash etc, and seeing as it will be able to tell if the key has actually been sold etc.. then it can just make your copy drop to reduced functionality as soon as they produce a new way of activation checking.
Quote mclean007 6th March 2007, 10:07
Quote:
Originally Posted by Buzzons
keygens are nout new, as are activation work arounds (such as Activate by phone - which most apps use if pirated.)

the only down side for pirates is that MS can change how it activates its products at will - different types of hash etc, and seeing as it will be able to tell if the key has actually been sold etc.. then it can just make your copy drop to reduced functionality as soon as they produce a new way of activation checking.
What if, however, someone has also legitimately bought that copy and installed it using their key - all MS can know is that the copy with that key has been sold but is being used in two places. How can they then determine which of the two to drop to reduced functionality? One thing MS will have to avoid at ALL costs is any risk whatsoever of invalidating a legitimate copy or telling Jimmy, who has bought his copy at PC World, that he "may be using counterfeit software".
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