SP1 Unsuccessful in Preventing Vista Hacks

"The other A. N. Other" writes "It seems that Microsoft has been unsuccessful with SP1 in preventing hackers from turning a pirated, non-genuine copy of Vista into genuine copies that pass activation. The article initially looked at two of the most popular hacks (OEM BIOS hack and the grace timer hack) but after a little digging ZDNet were able to transform a non-genuine install into a genuine one. 'After a few minutes of searching the darker corners of the Internet and a few seconds in the Command Prompt I was able to fool Windows into thinking that it was genuine.'"

Comments

This is nothing new

[Anonymous Coward]

MS doesn't want to stop all Vista piracy. Sure, they want to stop commercial outfits producing fake Vista DVDs but stopping all Vista piracy is bad business. Using Vista (even a pirated copy) keeps you locked-in and makes it easier for MS to get people using more MS software. After all, Vista was an industry-wide attempt to get everyone buying new hardware. Yeah it failed (hardware sales have been well below expectations) but using free Vista still encourages you to get new hardware like DX10 video cards & other DRM-riddled hardware.

Of course

[koan]

M$ could lock it down and make it much more difficult but why? With everyone using it because it's easy to pirate they maintain their market share, and it appears there is no shortage of people willing to pay for that crap called Vista.
I have to say the other post about "the ones that steal it making it harder for everyone else" is one of the most naive and ignorant post I have ever seen.
It isn't "stealing" it's copyright violation, and you have fairly naive view of human behavior.

Relax there are more important things to worry about than some crappy OS.

Re:Here we go again...

[Firehed]

You've been modded funny, but that's how I run half my software. By running a cracked copy, I never have to worry about WGA, (re)activation, etc. I could do things completely legitimately and call up India every few months, or just install from a different disc despite owning a legal, shiny, "do not make illegal copies of this disc"-hologrammed copy, and never have to be bothered with any of it.

It's been working well for me for years, and I see no reason to stop. They have my money, I have their software, and I get to use what I paid for. Problem? Didn't think so.