andrew@alberta.UUCP (Andrew Folkins) (06/26/85)
In article <11330@brl-tgr.ARPA> ron@brl-tgr.ARPA (Ron Natalie <ron>) writes: >> What you get with the package is a small plastic >> gizmo that plugs into the HP-IB connector on your 150. > >There's a generic name for the gizmo that "key" you plug into the >micro that the software checks for, but I've forgotten what it is, >can anyone help. > >-Ron From "Unveiling the Pirate, Part 1: Current Methods", by Richart T. Evers published in _The_Transactor_, Vol 5, #3, pg 41. ---------------------------------- Dongle Protection This form of protection is my personal favorite. You have at least a fighting chance against the pirate with this one, with the victor often the manufacturer. In case you are unsure what dongle protection is, let me explain. A dongle is a rude name for a hardware apparatus that is plugged into your computer. [Details about Commodore machines] Now for the explanation of what they do. Inside the dongle can be found anything from one piece of wire to a complete assortment of electronic components. For an added thrill, use the results generated by the dongle in the calculations and operation of the program itself. Anything from timers or pulse multipliers to frequency generators or filters can be included. Therefore, even if the hacker can manage to stop the program from checking for the dongle, the program may never work properly again. ---------------------------------- This section of the article continues with methods for making the dongles themselves unbreakable, including : - Extra components and obscure wiring to make X-rays difficult to interpret - Removing identification markers from the components to prevent identification if the dongle material is easily removable - Use a tough material to encase the components. The author recommends methyl methacrylate (denture material), as it is impervious to solvents and heat, "the easiest and least expensive being Tray Material". It costs about $8.00 per pound, and it could be difficult to obtain as the dental profession frowns on outside sales. "Try a few of the smaller dental supply companies, or smaller dental manufacturers. These companies will often deviate from normal procedures, with the correct amount of prodding." - "Place a few very important thin wires throughout the material itself. Once the chipping begins, these wires will be cut by the illustrious chipper, thus making the dongle useless." ------------------------------ I agree that this type of protection has many advantages. The author makes several points : it is easy for the user to install (or should be), it is easy on his hardware because the programs do not (should not!) need to be copy protected so there is no head-banging on the part of disk drives trying to read non-standard disk formats, and, if the dongle is sophisticated enough and is actively used by the program, it becomes prohibitively expensive to break the program and quite difficult to copy the dongle. It also allows the user to make as many back up copies as he wants, which is one of the major problems with copy protected software ("Sure, send us _your_ copy and we'll send you a replacement for $50.00 when we get around to it . . .") . One only hopes that manufacturers are kind enough to put the name of the program on the dongle, it would be fun sorting through a drawerful of these things trying to find the right one. -- Andrew Folkins ihnp4!alberta!andrew Underlying Principle of Socio-Genetics : Superiority is recessive.