http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/ Engadget Comments for Starforce DRM said to force reboots http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 12:23PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
This IS against some kind of anti-computer-hacking laws, right? riiight?]]>Mar 21st 2006 12:29PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 12:31PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 12:35PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
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Sounds like a computer virus to me...

Ill just stick to buying games that wont install a computer virus in my system :-p]]>Mar 21st 2006 12:49PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/You don't sue Starforce the company, you sue the companies that use their protection. Just like in Sony's case - it wasn't Sony's software that was a rootkit. It was third party software that Sony implemented.]]>Mar 21st 2006 12:57PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 1:19PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
After clearing Starforce and the game from my computer, it went back to normal. Just google "starforce" and "boycott".]]>Mar 21st 2006 1:21PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 1:27PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 1:31PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Slackware.]]>Mar 21st 2006 1:45PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/And they frequently threaten websites that post negative comments about them... ]]>Mar 21st 2006 1:46PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
I'm glad all those decades of totalitarianism are coming in handy for those Russkies and for our software companies.]]>Mar 21st 2006 1:53PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
This employee posted this ON STARFORCES OWN FORUM...the official forum, run by starforce.

And then there is the case where another employee, on the same forum, responded to a post about an interview in, I think, PCM stating that they had not read the article, and then asked the person TO SCAN THE MAGAZINE ARTICLE....

They REALLY care about copyrights.]]>Mar 21st 2006 2:16PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
http://www.futuremark.com/news/?newsarticle=200603/2006032104#200603/2006032104

Ergo the source is dubious and possibly so is the content....

]]>Mar 21st 2006 2:21PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
Anyhow, suing companies that use this technology would be the route to take, intolerable cruelty to those paying to use your product.

Who pays to get raped? Not many.]]>Mar 21st 2006 3:40PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
Untrue. User privalage. Windows doesn't understand the concept. Therefore, it is a "flaw" in winbloze.

Learn your Unices before you vomit things that you appearantly know nothing of.]]>Mar 21st 2006 3:54PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 4:26PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
:)
LG]]>Mar 21st 2006 4:30PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
You obviously do not understand the difference in how the Kernel is inter-weaved within the Windows Desktop, as opposed to Linux/Unix/OS X, etc. Go read some whitepapers on kernel architecture. Of course, they could really be A**holes and force a Kernel panic, but I wouldn't think they would be that bold.

Besides, if I am not mistaken, the article suggest reboot, not just merely logging out.

And if you really want a password box to appear for a user on log out, that can be arranged. :-P

Anything else?]]>Mar 21st 2006 5:14PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
AVOID SONY CD'S!!!!!!!!!!!
AVOID STRARFORCE!!!!!!!!!!

They are stealing ALL of your personal information, and I'll be in the CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT building momentum now ....

SONY should be renamed "We're hackers too, Inc."
]]>Mar 21st 2006 6:09PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
Where did they plant that CHIP in you?]]>Mar 21st 2006 6:13PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 6:32PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 6:55PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
Starforce, go to hell. If your worthless software ends up on my computer I will have to find a vunerability in your network. (As per Generals... "There is always a way in...")

When I buy a game I buy the game, not some bloody DRM from hell. You want to reset my computer... Go to hell.

I almost bought TOCA 3.... OMG. I feel noobish.

Alrighty Congressmen hear this! I propose to make it illegal for any software to install without having an uninstall program! (One that removes the WHOLE program thankyou.) This would make this whole thing moot. Make it a felony. Granted this won't stop Russians/etc. from doing it, but it is a start.

Bring that bill up and I'll vote for you, even if you eat babies.

In short, if I worked for starforce I wouldn't tell anyone about it. I've seen what happens to hackers at lan parties (Ever seen the insides of a gpu smashed against cement?) and I doubt that these people would receive treatment half as nice. I know if I met one in a bar they'd at the very least end up with a drink in their laps.

Thank god I decided TOCA 3 looked like a cheap GT ripoff and was probably more arcade than simulation. I don't like to have to break out the crowbar to get crud out of my computer, but hey, I imaged my disk I can take it.]]>Mar 21st 2006 8:51PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 9:33PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 21st 2006 10:30PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.glop.org/starforce/

Also a handy forum...]]>Mar 22nd 2006 4:46AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
My copy of Half-Life 2 doesn't need to phone home before allowing me to play. Shame it doesn't manage to support multiplayer over Xbox Live, though :(]]>Mar 22nd 2006 5:13AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
Awesome, you use big words to skirt around that you didn't answer my question. So where can I find the password or authentication for when I want to restart the Mac that I'm on? Oh yea, there isn't any. Did you know you can run an applescript without any authentication that will logout the current user, guess not, you should go read more whitepapers.

tell application "System Events"
keystroke "q" using {command, shift down}
delay 0.5
keystroke return
end tell

^ must have missed that in the white paper]]>Mar 22nd 2006 9:22AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
http://www.glop.org/starforce/

]]>Mar 22nd 2006 10:32AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/Mar 22nd 2006 11:06AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
Moreover, the Starforce drivers, installed on your system, grant ring 0 (system level) privileges to any code under the ring 3 (user level) privileges. Thus, any virus or trojan can get OS privileges and totally control your system. Since Windows 2000, the Windows line security and stability got enhanced by separating those privileges, but with the Starforce drivers, the old system holes and instabilities are back and any program (or virus) can reach the core of your system by using the Starforce drivers as a backdoor.

just to bring u guys ypto date *snickers]]>Mar 31st 2006 3:41PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/http://www.engadget.com/2006/03/21/starforce-drm-said-to-force-reboots/
Fortunately, I'm in a good mood, and won't do it.

To Wrex: you fully misunderstand how Windows works. StarForce doesn't use any exploits or elevation in privileges to bork Windows. This is not a Windows vulnerability. The only "weakness" is the tendency of most users to run everything as administrator ("root" for you Unix people). Educating people to create a LUA account would go a long way towards ameliorating this; StarForce wouldn't even install since non-admin's can't install drivers.

Linux (and Mac, for that matter, since it's just Linux with a wood veneer) would be similarly borked if, in order to run a video game, you had to be root and the video game required installation of a kernel driver. Any operating system is vulnerable to this combination of poor user education and social engineering on the part of the malware company ("Click here to continue" when clicking is actually borking your computer...)

The only solution is an economic one: pirate all StarForce games and boycott/sue manufacturers like UbiSoft. Hit them in the pocketbook!]]>Mar 31st 2006 7:05PM