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Is Microsoft about to release a Windows kill switch? | |
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| Time: 13:09 EST/18:09 GMT | News Source: ZDNet | Posted By: Kenneth van Surksum | ||
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Two weeks ago, I wrote about my serious objections to Microsoft’s latest salvo in the war against unauthorized copies of Windows. Two Windows Genuine Advantage components are being pushed onto users’ machines with insufficient notification and inadequate quality control, and the result is a big mess. (For details, see Microsoft presses the Stupid button.) Guess what? WGA might be on the verge of getting even messier. In fact, one report claims WGA is about to become a Windows “kill switch” – and when I asked Microsoft for an on-the-record response, they refused to deny it. | ||
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| #1 By 15406 (216.191.227.68) at 6/27/2006 1:28:58 PM |
| Great. I'm sure every Windows user will sleep better at night knowing that the WGA Sword of Damocles hovers just above their heads. |
| #2 By 46122 (151.202.50.203) at 6/27/2006 2:16:31 PM |
| From what I have read about WGA, what is the big deal? |
| #3 By 23275 (68.17.42.38) at 6/27/2006 2:56:13 PM |
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Latch... we are in 10000% agreement! BTW, that was hilarious.... right up until I realized just how relevant and true your remark was....
"IF" and it is a monster "IF" WGA's implementation was 100% up to speed, I might think differently.... but if so little as a mainboard BIOS update turns the WGA beast back on... and one has to re-WGA [a suggested new word.... spoken a ROOO-GA], and that process is not completed and a machine is "Killed" for whatever a time period, then people are going to flip out and they wil find alternatives! |
| #4 By 15406 (216.191.227.68) at 6/27/2006 3:07:23 PM |
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#2: What's the big deal? Well, if this article is to be believed, then by this Fall MS will require WGA be installed or Windows won't work after 30 days. And, as an added bonus, MS will be able to remotely disable your copy of Windows if it believes it's pirated.
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| #5 By 15406 (216.191.227.68) at 6/27/2006 3:12:03 PM |
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#3: I think you're mixing WPA and WGA. WPA will kick in if a significant change occurs to the system. WGA verifies whether the system's product code & WPA status are legit, if I understand correctly. WGA relies on WPA, but they can both bite you if your stars aren't aligned right. However, I'm confident that the underground will come up with a way around it, just as they already have with the WGA phone-home fix.
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| #6 By 32132 (64.180.219.241) at 6/27/2006 4:10:16 PM |
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I know of people who have gone out and purchased a legitimate copy of XP Home because their pirated copy can no longer get automatic updates because of WGA.
http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/downloads/faq.aspx#Question5Label "To help customers who unknowingly purchased a counterfeit version of Windows XP, Microsoft has created two genuine Windows offers for those who qualify: Complimentary offer: Microsoft will make a complimentary copy of Windows XP available to customers who have been sold counterfeit Windows. Customers will be required to submit a proof of purchase, the counterfeit CD, and a counterfeit report with details of their purchase. Only high-quality counterfeit Windows will qualify for the complimentary offer. Electronic License Key Offer: Microsoft will offer an alternative for customers who find out via the WGA validation process that they are not running genuine Windows, but do not qualify for, or choose not to take advantage of, the complimentary offer. These customers will be able to license a Windows Genuine Advantage Kit for Windows XP online for a price of $99 for Windows XP Home edition or $149 for Windows XP Professional. The Windows Genuine Advantage Kit for Windows XP will include a new 25-character Product Key and a Windows Product Key Update tool that will allow customers to convert their counterfeit copy to genuine Windows XP electronically. " |
| #7 By 17996 (131.107.0.72) at 6/27/2006 6:29:42 PM |
| And even if you can no longer use Windows Update or Automatic Updates due to not installing WGA, you can still download security patches manually. Each security bulletin has links to separate, downloadable packages. The only downside is that you have to stay on top of the patches yourself instead of Windows doing it for you: a small price to pay if you're a pirate. (Not sure how service packs fit into this.) |
| #8 By 3653 (68.52.143.149) at 6/27/2006 8:30:25 PM |
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latch - "I'm confident that the underground will come up with a way around it"
just buy a legit copy and stop STEALING. I'll steal my music and my movies, but I draw the line at stealing code. Perhaps its because I make my money in that industry. Either way... stealing is wrong. Latch, in case you are living in an illusion... YOU ARE STEALING. Now, knowing that, if you continue to steal... you can't claim ignorance. |
| #9 By 16451 (71.210.197.155) at 6/27/2006 10:07:52 PM |
| I didn't see where Latch admitted to stealing anything. On the other hand, you clearly did. And Parker admitted to associating with people who pirated software. Birds of a feather... |
| #10 By 23275 (68.17.42.38) at 6/27/2006 10:15:15 PM |
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Latch, I am not at all confused about WPA, and or WGA. On principle, I don't mind either; however, once I have activated the product and also validated, I'd like the machine to leave all well enough alone. "Validating" in order to get a copy of some new free download is also fine, but this business of communicating out-bound in a way that is not 100% known to a person is not acceptable. Whatever it sends, or requests needs to be sent to a dump file that is very clear to the user as to what is being sent to whom and for what reason.
Similar gaffs have impacted my family with regard to purchased music. We have an MSN Music account. We have two MCE's systems and only two of the kids have portable devices. Out of the blue, one MCE could no longer play music we bought. We had to go through a real mess to get the matter sorted out. WGA promises to be no better. Upon updating one of the system's BIOS we were met with yet another round of WGA Validations. Fine, all went through and off we went. The issue is, do we own a license to use the software or not? By virtue of using the software - however licensed - do we surrender all content stored on it for review? I want to know. I'd like to know what I own, or not and I'd like to know now - I will make decisions based upon the answers. I've always played by the rules and have fully boxed copies of all software I use - it is in fact, under-used - meaning, I have more copies than running machines. I'd like to know if I own anything at all - I mean, is my MS MCE wireless keyboard mine? Are our Joysticks ours? Are the six copies of office I bought for my family ours, or should I call MS each time we open Word? I've never stolen a thing in my life - not one thing and MS can be assured that a lot of people are not going to sit still for this one. "MS, go find and prosecute pirates, but leave the rest of us the heck alone!" |
| #11 By 17996 (66.235.19.95) at 6/27/2006 11:38:51 PM |
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Remember who the real target of the WGA program is: consumers who inadvertently are running a pirated copy of Windows. More specifically, the entity that sold those inadvertent consumers their copy of Windows. For example, those who buy a new PC from a shady PC seller who installs pirated copies of Windows. In this case, Microsoft is not the only one who gets hurt: honest PC sellers (e.g. the honest Mom & Pop store) lose business to lawbreaking PC sellers who can afford to sell their PCs cheaper because they don't pay for Windows licenses. WGA is just as important to others in the PC ecosystem as it is to Microsoft.
Microsoft knows that WGA's impact on serious, individual pirates (the aforementioned "underground") is going to be limited at best. But that's not its target, its target is bad PC sellers and professional counterfeiters. |
| #12 By 12071 (203.185.215.144) at 6/27/2006 11:41:06 PM |
| #8 If you're going to start throwing stones in your glass house at least get it right... it's "copyright infringement" not stealing! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_infringement |
| #13 By 3653 (68.52.143.149) at 6/28/2006 5:49:17 AM |
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lots of jokes from the thieves.
seriously, can you not manage the small fee for the software you use? just because you hate msft, doesn't make it right. This post was edited by mooresa56 on Wednesday, June 28, 2006 at 05:53. |
| #14 By 15406 (216.191.227.68) at 6/28/2006 9:02:49 AM |
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I love how people twist meaning to match their preconceptions. I do not oppose WGA because I'm looking to pirate software. That assinine logic sounds like Bush and his "If you're not with me, you're with the terrorists" nonsense, as if there were only two options. I oppose WGA because I oppose MS' forcing my system to report in every day. I oppose WGA because I oppose MS having that much direct control over my system. And if the story is to be believed, come this Fall they'll have even more control to the point of being able to totally disable my system. I guess I'm not willing to jump through hoops for the sake of the industry. Maybe that's why I go and get No_CD cracks for games that I've purchased.
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| #15 By 2960 (68.101.39.180) at 6/28/2006 10:07:23 AM |
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WPA isn't the only problem.
MS could shut down XP and force Vista upgrades by shutting down activation for XP. Probably won't, but it COULD. If you buy your music from a music store, what if that store goes out of business? If you can't authorize the computer for playback, your $$$ spent for that music is down the drain. Product Activation? What if the company goes under. Now you can't install the software you paid $$$ for any longer. At a MINIMUM, for consumer protection (yeah, I know the current administration doesn't give a rats ass about consumers or it's citizens), but anyway.... There should be a law requiring activation removal from products if a company goes under. We have ourselves a really ugly mess here. And you simply cannot trust corporations to do the right thing. TL |
| #16 By 23275 (68.17.42.38) at 6/28/2006 7:23:12 PM |
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TL is right.. dead right.
I want to "see" exactly what WGA is sending, to what hosts and be able to read in plain English what is sent and how it is used. Just today, on another machine, WGA wanted some kind of update, rebooted and fetched another update of some kind. The update hung, dumped an svchost.exe process, killed about 20 services and required another reboot. The software [ALL OF IT], was/is of course perfectly lawful and fully licensed and at no time did any WGA warnings pop up. Just having to do this all the time is such a mess. I mean my God.... between this, updates, anti..this and anti... that updates... and bloddy Adobe .PDF reader updates... it's taking longer and longer to even "START" working on anything meaningful. At no time was it nearly clear enough "WHY" the new WGA validation tool was needed. It is just too much and I do assess MS is placing itself at very consideable risk over this. This entire policy of gradualization is not going to work. Rather than just react, I started to really think and all of this and it hit me.... this is all about a huge emerging market where MS is really in trouble of losing a great deal of revenue...China. The potential base is just too big to ignore and piracy is assumed to be very high. Frankly I assess we are being used as an under-informed BETA test group for software MS will need to offset losses in PAC Asia. In the process they are stepping on a lot of people's toes and they risk insulting, and angering their base and partners. |
| #17 By 3653 (68.52.143.149) at 6/29/2006 12:17:21 PM |
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TL - "you simply cannot trust corporations to do the right thing."
TL, other than YOURSELF, who can you trust to do the right thing? You make that statement as if there is some opposing, counter weight out there that is doing the right thing. Who is it? |
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