Windows Vista DRM Broken?

Windows Vista is barely out the door and a Microsoft Student Ambassador is already claiming that he has successfully bypassed the Digital Rights Management mechanism integrated into the operating system. Alex Ionescu, a Concordia University in Montreal, Canada student on his way to a bachelor's degree in Software Engineering, has stated on his blog that he has finished up the exploit code that allows him to circumvent Vista's DRM.

On a closer check, Ionescu stated that the Proof-of-Concept code that he has put together fails to function out of the box on a Windows Vista RTM edition.

"However, it does bypass DRM. As part of the Protected Media Path, (PMP), Windows Vista sets up a number of requirements for A/V software and drivers in order to ensure it complies with the demandes of the media companies. One of these features, which has been heavily criticized as being the actual reason behind driver signing, is that "some premium content may be unavailable" if test signing mode is used," explained Ionescu.

Ionescu, who, judging strictly by his name, has some Romanian blood running through his veins, has not made the PoC available and has stated that he is reluctant to do so due to the legal issues involved with protected content. He is however considering releasing the Vista DRM bypass toll with crippled binaries.

"Since I wasn't able to get a working POC until now, I haven't made a lot of noise about it� if I get it working right tomorrow, I will probably send a little note to Microsoft to make sure they don't go medieval on my ass - it has zero customer impact so I don't think they will, but I apologize if I'll have to can it," Ionescu added.