Blu-Ray cracked by Slysoft, rips pouring from air

This is the reason for all the new Blu ray rips hitting the torrent sites these days. The recent massive increasement in amount of Blu-Ray rips has an obvious reason: cracked protection BD+. A Caribbean firm called SlySoft claims to have broken the copy protection technology used on some Blu-ray discs designed to prevent video content from being copied and pirated. SlySoft has long sold a product called AnyDVD which is a utility that disables a DVD’s Content Scramble System (CSS) copy protection technology. Once a DVD’s copy protection is disabled, you can copy its content using one of several third-party programs. Now the company SlySoft is upping the DRM-busting ante with a new version of AnyDVD HD 6.4.0.0 ($47) that promises to crack Blu-ray disc copy protection.

The copy protection cracked by SlySoft is called BD+. According Macrovision, the company that owns the rights to the BD+ technology, the copy protection has been adopted by “more than 20 companies including major CE manufactures, motion picture studios, as well as The Blu-ray Disc Association.” It’s likely that Macrovision and the Blu-ray Disc Association will knock heads and thwart SlySoft’s crack of BD+. In fact SlySoft representatives have publicly stated the it’s not only likely but probable that the BD+ copy protection technology could be tweaked to prevent Blu-ray discs from being cracked. DRM-cracking technology has long been a thorn in the side of Hollywood anti-piracy fighters. Despite the Motion Picture Association of America’s efforts to crack down on DVD-ripping and despite U.S. copyright laws that make it illegal, sales of software that bypass DVD copy protection continue online and at retail stores. While this may be a sad day for MPAA, it’s a much welcomed breakthrough for the scene.