Microsoftsaid it will increase its
efforts against piracy and has outlined steps being taken to
protect Windows Vista from ongoing and known counterfeiting
threats.
The upcoming
Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) will include updates that
target and disable two types of known exploits to the Windows Vista
activation process.
Also, as part of SP1, the company is making changes in how it
differentiates user experiences for genuine and counterfeit systems
by changing the way its
Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) program works on user
machines.
Mike Sievert, corporate vice-president for Windows product
marketing, said, "Research from the Business Software Alliance
(BSA) estimates that annually, 35% of software in use worldwide is
not paid for, and in certain countries that rate can top 80%. We
have to address this."
Progress was being made said Sievert. "Although piracy rates are
hard to measure precisely, we are seeing indications from internal
metrics, such as
WGA validation failures, that the Windows Vista piracy rate
today is less than half that of Windows."
Sievert said there were two primary types of exploits pirates
often use to generate counterfeit versions of Windows Vista.
One is known as the OEM Bios exploit, which involves modifying
system files and the BIOS of the motherboard to mimic a type of
product activation performed on copies of Windows that are
pre-installed by OEMs in the factory.
Another is called the Grace Timer exploit. This exploit attempts
to reset the "grace time" limit between installation and activation
to something such as the year 2099 in some cases.
SP1 will include updates that will target these exploits and
disable them, he said.
Microsoft is also changing tack when dealing with counterfeit
Vista installations. Users whose systems are identified as
counterfeit will be presented with clear and recurring notices
about the status of their system and how to get genuine
software.
They will not lose access to functionality or features, but it
will be very clear to them that their copy of Window Vista is not
genuine and that they need to take action, said Sievert.
This is a change in tactics from the current approach for
Windows Vista. With the original release-to-manufacturers version
of Windows Vista released in November 2006, counterfeit systems can
go into a state called reduced functionality mode, which
essentially suspends a number of features of the system until the
user takes action to get genuine software.
This change will take effect with the launch of SP1 in the first
quarter of next year. In the past, some users have complained that
the WGA system has wrongly identified their OS as being illegal,
and has shut down features.
Sievert said the firm was committed to making WGA more
accurate.