The Evil That is SafeDisc Continues

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2002-12-02 04:10am

http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2001/8/1/17156/40276

New Scientist reports that the new anti-piracy feature on audio CDs (which TheRegister reported today had been cracked), has the potential to damage loudspeakers by introducing square waves into the amplified signal. Although the article does not mention it, many people copy their (legitimately purchased) audio CDs for use in their automobiles, to protect against theft. This raises further questions as to how much damage the industry is willing to cause to consumers to protect their 'property'.

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From somethingawful.co* by Nebob:

You probably know C-Dilla as the shitsucking cumgarggling vomitsnorkeling faggots who created safedisc, the protection that causes 5 minute load times, lost spots on servers and complete inability to use the software that you have paid for.

However, the people at C-Dilla weren't satisfied with merely unpleasant unlubed assrape. They had to have more. To this end, they have created safecast, a revolutionary new copy protection that:

- Installs a kernel mode driver without your knowledge or consent, which:
- Attempts to prevent copying of any copy protected CD on a kernel level
- Logs and transmits* all attempted CD burns, including their full file index
- Logs and transmits* copy protected CD burns, including personally identifiable system information
- Logs and transmits* all file downloads, including the server the file was downloaded from and the name of the file

- This kernel mode driver:
- Is not removed when the protected application is uninstalled
- Is reinstalled and reenabled each time you run the protected application
- Can not be uninstalled without a operating system reinstallation
- Causes your software to fail if it is not installed

I am personally aware of three software titles that come with this protection. If you know any others, please share. They are:

Mechwarrior 4: Black Knight expansion
Mechwarrior 4: Clan MechPack
Mechwarrior 4: Inner Sphere MechPack

To determine if you have been infected, search your system for CDAC11BA.EXE, CDAC15BA.SYS, and check your task manager to see if CDAC11BA.EXE is running. If it is, your system has been compromised and you should take corrective action immediately. To remove the infection, follow these steps:

(1) Kill the CDAC11BA.EXE process
(2) Delete CDAC11BA.EXE and CDAC15BA.SYS from \system32\drivers
(3) Reboot your machine

Since the infection will reestablish itself every time you use the protected program, you will need to do this immediately after each usage. I recommend writing batch scripts to automate the process as much as possible.

Important Note: Kernel mode drivers are not governed by software firewalls. Your firewall will not warn you if activity is taking place.

*clarification: Can be configured to. I don't think it actually is on the above products

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Feem:

Oh my god.

This is fascinating on so many levels. Apparently, in the minds of many software publishers, not only is your computer their personal domain within which to run free, but your safety precautions (such as ntfs, firewalls, and tight control of the kernel and kernel services within operating systems such as Windows XP) are theirs for the taking, manipulating, and general beshitting upon.

Wow.

Just wow.

*********

Dry Ice CO2

Is this even fucking legal?

I know that our Canadian privacy laws are much less opressive than the U.S. with their DMCA, CBDPTA, Patriot Act and other five-minute hack jobs of legislature, so I'm wondering if this would be legal according to Canadian law. I'm pretty sure the U.S. legal system welcomes this kind of shit because Congress is getting paid off by lobby groups and major industry representatives (RIAA, MPAA, etc.) to turn a blind eye to how blatantly unconstitutional this new "Big Brother legislature" is, but I really fucking hope there's some way the Canadian legal system and the legal systems of other countries don't allow these things.

If this "SafeCast" is illegal according to Canadian law, would a Canadian who bought these infected MW4 expansion packs in a Canadian store be able to take them to court for this, or would the U.S. get jurisdiction so C-Dilla can get the case dismissed because their DMCA-powered force field is protecting them?

Honestly though, I'm absolutely DISGUSTED that freedoms and rights like YOUR OWN GOD DAMN PERSONAL PRIVACY are allowed to be intruded upon with this "Everyone's guilty of being a pirate until proven innocent" mindset, and I'm even more appaled at the fact that governments are supporting this shit instead of taking a stand against it. I pity you people in the U.S. who have to live with this shit on a daily basis, and I hope that this shit doesn't spread into Canada and the rest of the world.

I'm just surprised that nobody has got a bunch of people who are as equally pissed off at this shit as I am and formed a vigilante terrorist group in the U.S. to bomb the head offices of places like C-Dilla, the RIAA, the MPAA and the big fat-cat mansions which the congressmen who support these opressive laws reside in and purchased with the money they got from lobby groups representing the RIAA, MPAA and other such conglomerate shitmolesters. You'd think by now that someone would've created such a group, seeing as writing letters to congress and other non-violent forms of protest are obviously not working at all. If I were a U.S. citizen, I'd have formed a group like this long ago. Take a fucking stand, people

Post by **The Yosemite Bear** » 2002-12-02 04:22am

Yeah the point where the Software company's crossed the line was years ago. When Norton included a virus that would lock out your system, if you didn't continue to visit their site, and down load updates. Thing is, this virus was included in the "Free" trial copy's and remained even if you uninstalled the Systemantic software.

Or when Microsoft, wrote a bit of code that caused windows to tear up your hard drive if you didn't have a MICROSITH OPERATING SYSTEM.

Enlightenment · Post by **Enlightenment** » 2002-12-02 04:48am

Of course corporate totalitarianism is legal under US law. The core ideology of the American power structure to trade off social and political freedom in favor of economic output. The power structure will be perfectly happy with any degree of corporate abuse, no matter how severe or repressive to individual rights, as long as the benefits are manifested in corporate profits and in the size of the key economic indicators. The founding fathers would be pleased, as this is exactly the kind of government they wanted.

Post by **weemadando** » 2002-12-02 07:09am

This is why I hate the US.

I live in Australia yet US companies are still allowed to spy on me because I bought their CD/Software/DVD?

Fuck that.

The more I read the more I lean towards 1) going Linux 2) pirating. Lots.

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2002-12-02 07:11am

weemadando wrote:This is why I hate the US.

I live in Australia yet US companies are still allowed to spy on me because I bought their CD/Software/DVD?

Fuck that.

The more I read the more I lean towards 1) going Linux 2) pirating. Lots.

Actually.........it's because of the rampant EUROPEAN piracy scene....
go ask Battlefront.com and the German Software company CDV....

The US Version of Combat Mission 2 has NO Copy protection on the CDROM,
you can copy it PERFECTLY in a CDROM drive.....while the European
CDV version is "protected" by SafeDisc..

Post by **Vympel** » 2002-12-02 07:46am

Thank the maker that Aussies get the US version of everything!!!

Xon · Post by **Xon** » 2002-12-02 08:06am

You know, if you set up your security properly this wouldnt be a problem(For Windows 2000 & XP). Simply deny write permisions to your entire windows folder. I've also set it up on my system, so no one can actually delete/change any critical file.

However it beomes a moot point if you install as an admistrator.

beyond hope · Post by **beyond hope** » 2002-12-02 08:45am

CD piracy in Europe is unreal, and most of the copy-protected CDs first were issued over there. I hadn't heard about the copy protection on Mechwarrior 4 and it makes me question whether I want the game on here now. I work very hard at keeping any kind of spyware off my machine, on the principle that no one has a right to know how and when I use my PC unless I *choose* to volunteer this information. In fact, I just finished cleaning something called "Xupiter" off my system that Ad-aware didn't recognize. I hate how people put that stuff on their websites for you to catch without realizing it. "Comet Cursor" is another prime offender.

There were a few people at Microsoft who released an interesting if unofficial report on this recently. Their conclusion was that the RIAA has already lost, and I tend to agree: pretty soon everyone is going to have a 100 gig or better hard drive and broadband, and will be able to download all the music they please. Legislation to put spyware on PCs so they can get into your system and delete MP3s is never going to fly with the Supreme Court, and there's a way around every system of copy-protecting a CD (some you only have to put black magic marker on the outer ring of the CD!) The RIAA will either adapt and start offering CDs at a reasonable price, or else this will be their death knell.

Faram · Post by **Faram** » 2002-12-02 08:56am

ggs wrote:You know, if you set up your security properly this wouldnt be a problem(For Windows 2000 & XP). Simply deny write permisions to your entire windows folder. I've also set it up on my system, so no one can actually delete/change any critical file.

However it beomes a moot point if you install as an admistrator.

If you write protect the windows catalouge(sp?) make sure NOT to remove the system rights to r&w

To bad that you have to be an administrator to install applications on w2k and xp.

You can run installed applications as an non admin but not install.

neoolong · Post by **neoolong** » 2002-12-02 12:53pm

Black and White uses Safedisc 2, and because of that I can't run my legally purchased copy of it until I find some crack that would actually make it run.

Yeah, that's really going to stop pirates.

Vertigo1 · Post by **Vertigo1** » 2002-12-02 01:01pm

neoolong wrote:Black and White uses Safedisc 2, and because of that I can't run my legally purchased copy of it until I find some crack that would actually make it run.

Yeah, that's really going to stop pirates.

Yeah, but they've already got your money so they couldn't give a rats ass.

Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi · Post by **Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi** » 2002-12-02 01:23pm

The RIAA, and their ultimate goal (Eliminate a part of consumer freedom and give all the money to themselves an their no-talent artists) will never happen, no matter what they do, people will still manage to download music. There's something called the "black market". It's why prohibition and today's war on drugs were miserable failures. I say we do some sort of petition.

Cal Wright · Post by **Cal Wright** » 2002-12-02 02:27pm

Pretty funny that's on the MW4 espansions. THEY almost had me with that one. Luckily MW4 kept fucking up so I gave it back to my friend. Almost ready to jump in and buy all that shit to. Maybe if they concentrated on making fucking games that work (although, I'm probably the only one with this problem) instead of these outragous invasion tactics, they wouldn't have to worry about piracy.

Post by **Sea Skimmer** » 2002-12-02 02:50pm

DG_Cal_Wright wrote:Pretty funny that's on the MW4 espansions. THEY almost had me with that one. Luckily MW4 kept fucking up so I gave it back to my friend. Almost ready to jump in and buy all that shit to. Maybe if they concentrated on making fucking games that work (although, I'm probably the only one with this problem) instead of these outragous invasion tactics, they wouldn't have to worry about piracy.

Or they could just make crap sufficiently bad that no one would want a copy of it in the first place. With the quality of some games these day's I think that's the new approach.

beyond hope · Post by **beyond hope** » 2002-12-02 03:09pm

Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi wrote:The RIAA, and their ultimate goal (Eliminate a part of consumer freedom and give all the money to themselves an their no-talent artists) will never happen, no matter what they do, people will still manage to download music. There's something called the "black market". It's why prohibition and today's war on drugs were miserable failures. I say we do some sort of petition.

Exactly: the file-sharing genie is already out of the bottle. Interesting to note that while the RIAA is whining about file-sharing, 3 music distributers and 7 retailers were found guilty of price-fixing on CDs. Says a lot about their commitment to obeying the law. It's also interesting to note that they started losing money about the same time that they started jacking up the price of CDs... I guess it's tough to see that, though, when your head is firmly imbedded in your colon.

Cal Wright · Post by **Cal Wright** » 2002-12-02 03:16pm

Sea Skimmer wrote:
DG_Cal_Wright wrote:Pretty funny that's on the MW4 espansions. THEY almost had me with that one. Luckily MW4 kept fucking up so I gave it back to my friend. Almost ready to jump in and buy all that shit to. Maybe if they concentrated on making fucking games that work (although, I'm probably the only one with this problem) instead of these outragous invasion tactics, they wouldn't have to worry about piracy.
Or they could just make crap sufficiently bad that no one would want a copy of it in the first place. With the quality of some games these day's I think that's the new approach.

You've got a point. Which is rather pathetic to say the least. It's not just 'in my days' thing either. Metroid Prime is a fucking solid ass game. There was thought and hard work put into that. It's fucking stellar. GT3, GTA3 and Vice City are all prime examples. Yet poor ones are still cranked out. It seems they might have a philosophy to just pump out games that look cool as hell. Then again, they're failing on that approach as well, because many of them barely even tap the potential of the consoles they're on.

Admiral Valdemar · Post by **Admiral Valdemar** » 2002-12-02 03:19pm

I thought only paid whores were allowed to fuck you over this much.

Cal Wright · Post by **Cal Wright** » 2002-12-02 03:30pm

No, it's illegal in most states for money to change hands when getting fucked. So they can do as the please pretty much.

Post by **NecronLord** » 2002-12-02 03:40pm

Oh how I wish I lived in The imperium(my one) where the secret service has a branch whose mission is to kick the shit out of anyone doing that (bar themselves of course)

Xon · Post by **Xon** » 2002-12-04 09:55am

Faram wrote:
ggs wrote:You know, if you set up your security properly this wouldnt be a problem(For Windows 2000 & XP). Simply deny write permisions to your entire windows folder. I've also set it up on my system, so no one can actually delete/change any critical file.

However it beomes a moot point if you install as an admistrator.
If you write protect the windows catalouge(sp?) make sure NOT to remove the system rights to r&w

Very true, the OS does need to read its files...

To bad that you have to be an administrator to install applications on w2k and xp.

You can run installed applications as an non admin but not install.

With proper changes to the registery user permisions, it is possible to allow a normal user to install stuff but doesnt get installed into places you dont want it to. I've gone and disabled writing to the 'software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\run' key to stop crap loading at startup.

Some hints on how to do this:
Change the permisions for the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE to be readonly for 'everyone' & 'users'. Then apply these settings to the entire branch (Advanced->"Replace permisions..." check box)
Then change the key "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software" so 'everyone' & 'users' has read/write permisions. Then apply these settings to the entire branch
Then change the keys 'microsoft' & 'policies' & 'classes' to readonly for 'everyone' & 'users' (after removing inherite from parent & copying existing permisions) & then apply these settings the to branch.

That should allow the required read/write access almost every game needs to install, but no garrenties about that. Nor will I garrenty that this will not hose your computer.

I once removed all members from the admin group, had to reimage my laptop!