The technology was supposed to be bulletproof, even unbreakable, but a lone hacker on the popular Doom9.net message forum has unlocked the processing keys for both Blu-ray and HD-DVD discs, according to BoingBoing.net. This news surely will send the entertainment industry into a panic.
By unlocking the key, encrypted content can be extracted from both next-generation formats. What's more, the clever individual was able to defeat the technology with no cracking tools or reverse engineering, despite the millions of dollars and many years engineers put into developing the advanced-access content system for locking down high-definition video.
AACS is an extra security layer that prevents hi-def discs from illegal copying by restricting which devices can play them. It was the standard that Disney, Intel, Microsoft, Sony, and others used to protect the Blu-ray and HD DVD discs.
"AACS took years to develop, and it has been broken in weeks," according to BoingBoing.net. "The developers spent billions; the hackers spent pennies."
According to IGN.com, hackers previously broke a more cumbersome key in early January, but this new crack makes it easier to rip the content off the disc.
The hacker, who goes by Arnezami on Doom9.net, diligently worked for eight straight days, when he first claimed to have discovered how to read the volume ID of the movie King Kong. During the following days, he documented his progress, with the big moment occurring this past Sunday, when he was able to confirm the validity of his method for identifying the processing key. Combining the two allowed him to unlock the copy protection.
Arnezami explained how he accomplished this feat on the Doom9.net message boards. While his player loaded the Kong disc, he closely looked for changes being made to a certain part of his computer memory. Making a "memdump" with the WinHex file editor, he was about to find the key fairly easily. "I then had the feeling I had something," Arnezami wrote in his post.
Forum participants continue to debate the implications of Arnezami's handiwork. What's known for sure is that his hack unlocks the encryption used to protect content on every Blu-ray and HD-DVD disc released to date. Several participants have downplayed the significance of the discovery, reasoning that it could be undermined in the future if the keys are changed or revoked.
Still, Arnezami and others argue it will not be possible for copyright holders to turn back the hands of time. If a processing key is revoked, hackers can use a player compatible with the new one, insert a disc that already has been cracked, and sniff around in the memory for the new processing key.
This week's hack proves that preventing the copying of digital content is less straightforward than Hollywood had hoped.
