I was just glazing over the hubbub that's pervading the news sites about
DRM, and I started getting worried about something I hadn't previously
considered.
So we may be able to go along our merry ways, turning off DRM on our
processors (I remember reading that Intel has stated that the DRM
circuitry can be disabled through the BIOS) and running Linux. However,
the thing I'm concerned about it the fact that those around with whom we
will need to communicate.
I can picture it being an order of magnitude worse than simply
proprietary file formats. With those, some degree of reverse-engineering
can make them somewhat readable.
However, before too long, the plutocracy (Microsoft, Intel, et. al.)
will be shipping their stuff to Joe Consumer with DRM enabled by
default. That means that content *that they produce* will be DRM'd.
Those .doc files on the class website, or that email to the class, will
be unreadable to those who do not have the ability to decrypt and
display the files in a "trusted" computing environment.
That means that short of finding a way to factor very large prime
numbers quickly, we are up a creek without a paddle. Or a boat, for that
matter. Maybe DRM will be cracked. But in any case, even if it is, under
the DMCA, we are all criminals if we circumvent the encryption on the
documents distributed to us by those around us.
With DRM being shipped with hardware and software *today* (Creative and
MS have shipped a h/w s/w combination, according to The Register), this
Orwellian nightmare of "Trusted Computing" is already upon us. This is
all the more reason for us to educate others about the problems with
DRM, and to continue to advocate open standards in communications.
Mike
--
---------------------------------------- | ------------------------
Michael Halcrow | [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Research Assistant, Network Security Lab | Dept. of Comp. Science
| Brigham Young University
A computer scientist is someone who |
fixes things that aren't broken. |
---------------------------------------- | ------------------------
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