Microsoft updates WGA to find counterfeit Windows XP Pro

1 comment | 9I like it!
March 25, 2009, 04:08 PM —  Computerworld — 

Microsoft Corp., tacitly acknowledging the continued popularity of Windows XP, said Tuesday it was updating the operating system's anti-piracy technology to detect illegal copies installed with newly-stolen or faked product keys, or with new activation cracks.

In an entry to a company blog, Alex Kochis, senior product manager for Microsoft's Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) program, spelled out the update to WGA Notifications. That's the antipiracy component that provides the messages and other on-screen prompts when the other half of WGA, dubbed Validations, detects an illegal copy of the operating system.

"This update includes the latest validation information, including recently stolen or misused product keys and other information," said Kochis, who elsewhere in the blog noted that the "other" category included "attempts to circumvent product activation." Such circumvention methods, called "cracks," are popular downloads on file-sharing sites that also feature pirated software.

The update applies only to Windows XP Professional, added Kochis.

Although Microsoft tried to put a stop to Windows XP sales last year -- and will be shifting it into a more limited support plan next month -- it has relaxed its rules several times since then as customers have continued to demand new PCs with XP rather than Vista. Windows XP Professional is the only version that Microsoft allows users and computer sellers to "downgrade" from Vista.

The company has also acknowledged that Windows XP Professional is preferred by pirates over Vista by wide margins, and last year promised it would roll out a campaigns during 2009 to warn people that XP is widely counterfeited.

Sign up for ITworld's Daily newsletter
Follow ITworld on Twitter @IT_world

I like it!
Close

On Twitter now

windows

Powered by Twitter
You are logged in | Sign out
Sign in and post to Twitter

What are you thinking?

Cancel Tweet sent

On Twitter now

Comments

WIndows XP Pro Conterfeit.

This really sucks. A person goes and legally buys the program and then I get a pop up saying it may be conterfiet. I think its time for a new computer and I think APPLE would be a good choice. You can't even buy your programs anymore without having to pay twice for them. I can get the WGA CODE FOR 149.00 FROM MICROSOFT BUT GUESS WHAT. I ALREADY BOUGHT THE PROGRAM AND HAD A GOOD CODE.
| reply
peer-to-peer

Esther Schindler
If the comments are ugly, the code is ugly

claird
SVG a graphics format for 21st century

pasmith
Take Chrome OS for a test spin

Sandra Henry-Stocker
Solaris Tip: Have Your Files Changed Since Installation?

sjvn
64-bits of protection?

jfruh
Android fragments vs. the iPhone monolith

mikelgan
What Gizmodo missed about the Pro WX Wireless USB disk drive

 

Where Google Chrome security fails: the password
I heard mention that the Chrome OS will have some sort of encryption available a la bitlocker. If it's possible to encrypt personal data using another password or key, then it may have potential for very secure data.... And Ubuntu has an 'encrypt home directory' option, perhaps google should follow suit.
- Dann

Join the conversation here

The Daily Tip

The Daily TipQuick, practical advice for IT pros. Made fresh daily.

Hot tips:

Want to cash in on your IT savvy? Send your tip to tips@itworld.com. If we post it, we'll send you a $25 Amazon e-gift card.

Newsletters

Subscribe to ITWORLD TODAY and receive the latest IT news and analysis.

I would like to receive offers via email from ITworld partners.
By clicking submit you agree to the terms and conditions outlined in ITworld's privacy policy.
Featured Sponsor

AISO founders envisioned a Web hosting company that was environmentally friendly. While the company employed energy-efficient innovations like solar panels, its infrastructure produced unacceptable power and cooling requirements. Find out how AISO leveraged AMD technology to overcome their challenge in this case study white paper.

In this whitepaper, Scalar explores the opportunity to change the landscape with respect to mission critical databases built around Oracle. Leveraging technologies such as Linux, high-end commodity processing power and Oracle RAC technology to architect, design, build and maintain database infrastructure that delivers maximum availability, reliability and performance at a fraction of traditional cost.

On a typical day, weather.com, the Web site for The Weather Channel in Atlanta, serves up between 15 million and 20 million page views. But in September 2004, when back-to-back hurricanes ransacked Florida, the peak traffic on one day more than tripled: over 70 million page views by more than 7 million unique visitors. Read the full success story now.

Marketplace