Hackers find activation crack for Vista business edition

Hackers find activation crack for Vista business edition

WASHINGTON: Hackers have developed a way to activate the enterprise edition of Vista – Microsoft's new operating system, proving hollow the company's claims that it's the most secure version of Windows.

Piracy's latest target is Microsoft's Vista business edition. The company, in a bid to prevent piracy, had required every single copy of the o/s to be activated through one of two ways: either calling Microsoft directly for the authorization or by a method called Key Management Service (KMS).

The second method was intended for bulk/multiple activation against one centralized server. Companies which buy 25 numbers or more of the o/s would be given the KMS to simplify the activation process.

The company believed this activation policy would ensure hackers have no access to the o/s. But hackers have managed to develop a workaround with KMS. Hackers used a VMWare image and a VBS script to replicate a KMS that can successfully activate the o/s, according to reports. A user only has to download the free VMWare Player to simulate an image of a KMS server. Hackers have used the name MelindaGates for the activation crack which is being circulated on some file sharing sites.

Experts said the piracy success would be limited only to the enterprise edition and the method might not work with the Home and Ultimate editions. These, when launched, will have to be activated using the traditional method of directly communicating with Microsoft centers.

Although hackers may have been successful in developing the activation crack the systems would not work beyond six months when they have to be reactivated through the same centralized servers. By then Microsoft should be able to fix the issue by making it more secure, experts suggest. The software maker's anti-piracy initiative Windows Genuine Advantage Program may be find ways to identify, stop and deactivate the hack.