Digital rights management: Difference between revisions
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[[wikipedia:Digital_rights_management|'''Digital rights management''']] (DRM) broadly refers to any kind of access control technology that is used to deliberately restrict the usage of media content or devices after the sale. It is typically used by a seller to prevent unauthorized distribution or replication of their product. Implementations of DRM can range from very simple (such as a basic disc check) to extremely complex executable binary | [[wikipedia:Digital_rights_management|'''Digital rights management''']] (DRM), alternatively known as '''digital restrictions management'''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Stallman |first=Richard |title=Opposing Digital Rights Mismanagement |url=https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/opposing-drm.en.html |archive-url=https://archive.is/XwqaH |archive-date=2023-05-02}}</ref>, broadly refers to any kind of access control technology that is used to deliberately restrict the usage of media content or devices after the sale. It is typically used by a seller to prevent unauthorized distribution or replication of their product. Implementations of DRM can range from very simple (such as a basic disc check) to extremely complex executable binary obfuscation (such as Denuvo). | ||
{{Quote|<I>DRM creates a damaged good; it prevents you from doing what would be possible without it. – Defective by Design</I><ref>https://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm</ref>}} | {{Quote|<I>DRM creates a damaged good; it prevents you from doing what would be possible without it. – Defective by Design</I><ref>https://www.defectivebydesign.org/what_is_drm</ref>}} | ||
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==DRM in video content== | ==DRM in video content== | ||
Attempting to | Attempting to prevent the copying of video content is one of the most common and long-standing uses of DRM. The idea of using copy obstruction on video content predates the term "DRM", one early example being the "Automatic Gain Control" requirement in VCRs used to enforce the "Macrovision" copy-protection scheme.<ref>[https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/1201#k_1_A 17 U.S. Code § 1201 - Circumvention of copyright protection systems, K.1.A.i]</ref><ref>[https://cs.stanford.edu/people/eroberts/courses/cs181/projects/1999-00/dmca-2k/macrovision.html Macrovision Demystified], Stanford CS181. </ref> This requirement resulted in VCRs and compliant analog to DV capture cards not being able to record commercial VHS tapes{{citation needed}}. | ||
From 1996, DVDs began to feature the "Content Scramble System" (CSS), an encryption based DRM. CSS was successfully circumvented as early as 1999, less than five years after its introduction, partly due to the limited length of the 40-bit encryption key, which was used to comply with US government export regulations of the time.<ref>http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/DeCSS/FrankStevenson/mail1.txt</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20000302000206/http://www.dvd-copy.com/news/cryptanalysis_of_contents_scrambling_system.htm "Cryptanalysis of Contents Scrambling System", Frank A. Stevenson, archived from dvd-copy.com]</ref> Following this, DVDs as well as HD-DVDs and Blu-Rays would implement other types of DRM, one of them being the "Advanced Access Content System".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Advanced Access Content System (AACS) |url=http://www.aacsla.com/specifications/specs091/AACS_Spec_Common_0.91.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302130221/http://www.aacsla.com/specifications/specs091/AACS_Spec_Common_0.91.pdf |archive-date=2 Mar 2007 |access-date=20 Apr 2025}} | From 1996, DVDs began to feature the "Content Scramble System" (CSS), an encryption based DRM. CSS was successfully circumvented as early as 1999, less than five years after its introduction, partly due to the limited length of the 40-bit encryption key, which was used to comply with US government export regulations of the time.<ref>http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/DeCSS/FrankStevenson/mail1.txt</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20000302000206/http://www.dvd-copy.com/news/cryptanalysis_of_contents_scrambling_system.htm "Cryptanalysis of Contents Scrambling System", Frank A. Stevenson, archived from dvd-copy.com]</ref> Following this, DVDs as well as HD-DVDs and Blu-Rays would implement other types of DRM, one of them being the "Advanced Access Content System".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Advanced Access Content System (AACS) |url=http://www.aacsla.com/specifications/specs091/AACS_Spec_Common_0.91.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302130221/http://www.aacsla.com/specifications/specs091/AACS_Spec_Common_0.91.pdf |archive-date=2 Mar 2007 |access-date=20 Apr 2025}} | ||
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==DRM in software== | ==DRM in software== | ||
Most discussions about DRM often associate its use with some form of software | Most discussions about DRM often associate its use with some form of software restriction, from the simple product key, to the infamous [[Denuvo]] DRM. Historically, DRM started off with simpler physical techniques, such as decoder wheels and [[wikipedia:Lenslok|LensLok]]. The effectiveness of these systems varied, and many cracking groups simply found ways around them, especially since second-hand copies of software that used these primitive forms of DRM could easily become lost, damaged, or worse, fail to function with certain hardware.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Whitehead |first=Ben |date=15 Apr 2010 |title=Banging the DRM |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/banging-the-drm-article?page=2 |url-status=live |access-date=20 Apr 2025 |website=EuroGamer}}</ref> This has essentially sparked a game of cat and mouse that continues to fester, especially for the gaming community, to this day. | ||
==Consumer rights issues with DRM== | ==Consumer rights issues with DRM== | ||
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===Ineffectiveness of audio and video DRM=== | ===Ineffectiveness of audio and video DRM=== | ||
It is nearly impossible to prevent copying of non-interactive content such as audio and video once it is distributed to the consumer. | |||
Macrovision | Macrovision DRM can be defeated using a widely available time base corrector,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bought this box back in the early 90s to eliminate Macrovision copy guard on tapes - cost $49.95 back then. Decided to see if it still works by recording my Red Label Star Wars set to DVD. Still working it’s magic! |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/VHS/comments/so4xs5/bought_this_box_back_in_the_early_90s_to/ |url-status=live |access-date=20 Apr 2025 |website=Old Reddit}}</ref> which strips out the signal that triggers the AGC on VCRs or Macrovision compliant devices. | ||
Many HDMI splitters<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bypassing HDCP in 2024 |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/PS3/comments/19dohrh/bypassing_hdcp_in_2024/lbtqiky/ |url-status=live |access-date=20 Apr 2025 |website=Old Reddit}}</ref> and capture cards<ref>{{Cite web |title=I bought a $40 capture card off Amazon and it seems to have hdcp bypass because my PS3 works directly with it. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/PS3/comments/19dohrh/bypassing_hdcp_in_2024/kj7cu60/ |url-status=live |access-date=20 Apr 2025 |website=Old Reddit}} | Many HDMI splitters<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bypassing HDCP in 2024 |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/PS3/comments/19dohrh/bypassing_hdcp_in_2024/lbtqiky/ |url-status=live |access-date=20 Apr 2025 |website=Old Reddit}}</ref> and capture cards<ref>{{Cite web |title=I bought a $40 capture card off Amazon and it seems to have hdcp bypass because my PS3 works directly with it. |url=https://old.reddit.com/r/PS3/comments/19dohrh/bypassing_hdcp_in_2024/kj7cu60/ |url-status=live |access-date=20 Apr 2025 |website=Old Reddit}} | ||