Paul Craig, Ron Honick, Mark Burnett
Secrets from the Dark Side Revealed
Syngress
 |
| Software Piracy Exposed |
Paul Craig is currently working in New Zealand for a
major television broadcaster, and is also the lead security consultant
at security company Pimp Industries. Paul specializes
in reverse engineering technologies and cutting edge application
auditing practices. Paul has contributed to many books
including the first and second editions of Stealing the Network
(Syngress, ISBN: 1-931836-87-6 and 1-931836-05-1). None
of this would be possible without the love and support from
his fiancé, Kim Meyer. If you would like to contact Paul for
any reason, e-mail: headpimp@pimp-industries.com.
Paul wrote Chapters 2 through 11.
Technical Editor and
Contributing Author
Mark Burnett is an independent researcher, consultant, and
writer specializing in Windows security. Mark is author of
Hacking the Code:ASP.NET Web Application Security (Syngress
Publishing, ISBN: 1-932266-65-8), co-author of Microsoft Log
Parser Toolkit (Syngress Publishing, ISBN: 1-932266-52-6), coauthor
of Maximum Windows 2000 Security, and co-author of
Stealing The Network: How to Own the Box (Syngress
Publishing, ISBN: 1-931836-87-6). He is a contributor and
technical editor for Syngress Publishing’s Special Ops: Host and
Network Security for Microsoft, UNIX, and Oracle (ISBN:
1-931836-69-8). Mark speaks at various security conferences and has
published articles in Windows IT Pro (formerly Windows & .NET ),
WindowsSecrets.com newsletter, Redmond Magazine, Security
Administrator, SecurityFocus.com, and various other print and online
publications. Mark is a Microsoft Windows Server Most Valued
Professional (MVP) for Internet Information Services (IIS).
Mark wrote Chapter 1.
Contributing Author
Ron Honick has been an electronics engineer for over 30 years,
with a career spanning electronic hardware design, research and
development, engineering management, and running his own small
telecommunications company. A relentless inventor, he holds two patents.
Ron wrote Appendices A through D.
Table of Contents
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xv
Chapter 1 Inside Software Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
A Glimpse into the World of Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Copyright Pirates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
First Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
The Scene People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
“Rodan” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
“Fre0n” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
“kEM0” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
“Recreant” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
Chapter 2 The History of Software Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Humble Beginnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
Chapter 3 The Suppliers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Racing Against Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Why Be a Supplier? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Supplying Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35
Supplying in Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Physical Insiders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
FTP Snooping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
Credit Card Fraud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46
Hacking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50
Social Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
Demo CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
Legitimate Retail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58
Chapter 4 Crackers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Digital Pissing Contest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61
Fre0n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Cracking with Fre0n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67
Varying Cracking Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70
Serial Numbers and CD Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71
Statically Encoded Serial Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72
Node-locked Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
Algorithmic CD Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79
CD-ROM Protection Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82
Commercial Game Protectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84
Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .88
Dongles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90
Chapter 5 The Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Site Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .100
Dupe Checking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102
Packing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Pre’ing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104
Art in Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105
Chapter 6 Sites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Types of Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113
Site Bots and Clever Pirates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121
What about P2P? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124
Chapter 7 The Distribution Chain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Distribution in Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .127
Couriers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137
Public Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143
Chapter 8 The Piracy Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
The Many Faces of the Piracy Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .159
Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .160
Movies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .162
CAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163
Workprints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .164
Telesync . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .165
Telecine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .165
Screener . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .166
DVD Retail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .167
TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169
E-books and Bookware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .170
Music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .174
Adult Entertainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .176
Everything Else . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179
Blurring Scenes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .180
Chapter 9 Piracy and the Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Piracy is Illegal? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183
Pirates with Attitudes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186
Operation Buccaneer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .190
Bandido . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .191
Operation Fast Link . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .198
Operation Site Down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .203
Operation What’s Next? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .207
Chapter 10 The Future of Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Where Now? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .209
Software Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .211
Multimedia Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .214
Will the Piracy Scene Continue? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .219
Chapter 11 Closing Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Appendix A Pirating Software: Attitudes and Reasons 227
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .228
Attitudes About Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .228
Morality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .228
Justification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .228
Blame and Responsibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .229
Specific Reasons For Using Pirated Software . . . . . . . . . . .231
Saving Money . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .231
Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .233
The Right Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .234
Compatibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .235
Sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .235
Curiosity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236
Up-to-date Versions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236
Knowledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .237
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .238
Appendix B Why Software is Pirated. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240
Extent of the Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240
Pirated? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .241
Cost or Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .244
Curiosity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .247
Corporate Piracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .250
Appendix C Hazards, Solutions, and Tools . . . . . . . . . 253
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .254
Cyber Pests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .254
Viruses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .254
Antivirus Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .255
Spyware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256
Anti-spyware Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .256
Hackers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .257
Firewalls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .257
Browser Hijackers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .258
Dialers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .259
Pop-ups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .260
Other Browsers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .261
Pornography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265
Erroneous, Mislabeled, and Incomplete Files . . . . . . . . . . . .266
Product Defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .266
System Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .268
Restore Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .268
Language/Translation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .269
Disc Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .271
CD/DVD Appearance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .272
One More Thing to Consider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .273
Appendix D Fighting Back . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .276
Blacklisting and Disguising Revisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .276
Product Activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280
Technical Explanation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280
Windows XP Pirated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .281
History Repeats Itself . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .283
Other Product Activation Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . .286
Product Activation Bugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .287
On-line Verification/Server Authentication . . . . . . . . . . . .288
Booby Traps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .289
Commercial Software Protection Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . .290
The Pirates Don’t Give Up Easily . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .291
Reporting Violators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .293
What Else Can Be Done? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .293
Reason for Shareware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .294
Identify the Customer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .294
Product IDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .295
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297
Foreword
By Mark Burnett
In the last two decades, much of our world has undergone a major transformation.
It started slow, switching from rotary to touchtone phones,TV knobs to
digital remotes, and vinyl records to digital CD’s.Then it rapidly picked up
speed as home computers became a standard household appliance and Internet
service became a typical monthly utility bill.
At one time the home computer was a tool for students, hobbyists, and
businesses.We used our computers to accomplish some specific task, such as
balancing our checkbooks or keeping track of our schedules. Now the computer
is a content delivery tool serving up communications, entertainment,
education and other content. Our lives are now flooded with content.Weekly
HTML newsletters in our inboxes link to blogs that link to clips from The
Daily Show, or highlighting clips from 24-hour network news programs that we
already keep up with via RSS feeds.We watch movie segments in games and
game segments in movies.There’s always more content and there’s always
another link to follow.
Sometimes the content is the highest quality, and sometimes it just plain
sucks. If anything, this cultural transformation has changed how we perceive the
value of content. Most often, we see it as something we should get for free—as
if being in this modern world entitles us to an unlimited content license.With
so much out there free for the taking, a fixed price tag somehow seems out of
place.The result? An epidemic of global piracy.
We got a small glimpse of this world back in the eighties. It wasn’t
uncommon to see someone’s family room shelves full of video tapes with
hand-written labels of all the latest movies they had recorded. It didn’t seem
illegal to make a mix tape of your favorite songs for some friends. Into the
nineties, even computer stores loaded your PC up with the latest piracy-aiding
software when you bought a computer from them.
But that pales in comparison to piracy in this century. Once a couple casual
copies are now a couple thousand casual copies. Even beginners are able to
locate and download just about any song, movie, game, book, or software application
they want. It’s so easy to just take what you want.
Piracy, and more specifically, software piracy, is not just about casual
copying.To some it is a business.To others it’s a contest. Sometimes it’s simply
belonging to a community. And to some it’s an addiction. Piracy invades so
many aspects of this modern world, it’s impossible to avoid contact with it.This
has caused much panic for the content owners. And although they sometimes
react with every legal weapon in their arsenal, they have done little to stop the
explosive growth of piracy.
This book dives into the unique world of software piracy. It explores the
personalities and motivations of those behind much of the illegal software distribution
on the Internet. Paul’s aggressive investigation and reporting of this
world allowed him to explore the inner depths of the software piracy scene and
gained him exclusive interviews with some of the most notorious individuals in
the scene.Throughout the course of his year-long investigation, Paul sought out
the individuals behind this highly organized collection of individuals who
somehow flew under most of the public’s radar. Everyone seems to know about
P2P networks, but few are familiar with top sites, couriers, and other aspects of
the software piracy scene.
This book is the result of Paul’s extensive investigation. Here, he tells all.
By Mark Burnett
In the last two decades, much of our world has undergone a major transformation.
It started slow, switching from rotary to touchtone phones,TV knobs to
digital remotes, and vinyl records to digital CD’s.Then it rapidly picked up
speed as home computers became a standard household appliance and Internet
service became a typical monthly utility bill.
At one time the home computer was a tool for students, hobbyists, and
businesses.We used our computers to accomplish some specific task, such as
balancing our checkbooks or keeping track of our schedules. Now the computer
is a content delivery tool serving up communications, entertainment,
education and other content. Our lives are now flooded with content.Weekly
HTML newsletters in our inboxes link to blogs that link to clips from The
Daily Show, or highlighting clips from 24-hour network news programs that we
already keep up with via RSS feeds.We watch movie segments in games and
game segments in movies.There’s always more content and there’s always
another link to follow.
Sometimes the content is the highest quality, and sometimes it just plain
sucks. If anything, this cultural transformation has changed how we perceive the
value of content. Most often, we see it as something we should get for free—as
if being in this modern world entitles us to an unlimited content license.With
so much out there free for the taking, a fixed price tag somehow seems out of
place.The result? An epidemic of global piracy.
We got a small glimpse of this world back in the eighties. It wasn’t
uncommon to see someone’s family room shelves full of video tapes with
hand-written labels of all the latest movies they had recorded. It didn’t seem
illegal to make a mix tape of your favorite songs for some friends. Into the
nineties, even computer stores loaded your PC up with the latest piracy-aiding
software when you bought a computer from them.
But that pales in comparison to piracy in this century. Once a couple casual
copies are now a couple thousand casual copies. Even beginners are able to
locate and download just about any song, movie, game, book, or software application
they want. It’s so easy to just take what you want.
Piracy, and more specifically, software piracy, is not just about casual
copying.To some it is a business.To others it’s a contest. Sometimes it’s simply
belonging to a community. And to some it’s an addiction. Piracy invades so
many aspects of this modern world, it’s impossible to avoid contact with it.This
has caused much panic for the content owners. And although they sometimes
react with every legal weapon in their arsenal, they have done little to stop the
explosive growth of piracy.
This book dives into the unique world of software piracy. It explores the
personalities and motivations of those behind much of the illegal software distribution
on the Internet. Paul’s aggressive investigation and reporting of this
world allowed him to explore the inner depths of the software piracy scene and
gained him exclusive interviews with some of the most notorious individuals in
the scene.Throughout the course of his year-long investigation, Paul sought out
the individuals behind this highly organized collection of individuals who
somehow flew under most of the public’s radar. Everyone seems to know about
P2P networks, but few are familiar with top sites, couriers, and other aspects of
the software piracy scene.
This book is the result of Paul’s extensive investigation. Here, he tells all.
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Product details
Price
|
|
|---|---|
Pages
| 329 p |
File Size
|
6,376 KB |
File Type
|
PDF format |
ISBN
| 1-93226-698-4 |
Copyright
| 2005 by Syngress Publishing, Inc |
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