intelligence use of (cracked) games

Hi,
I was just wondering how easy can pirated but also legal software communicate through svchost process and sure in many other ways.
Then I thought that such a game - especially first person shooter - could without much software work generate player's movement map, his personal movement signature and also collect and analyse some national behaviour tendencies...to improve a military tactic.
Do you think there is some agenda behind it?
Why would anyone wasted his time cracking a game for hours or days and FOR FREE?
Any thoughts?

PapagiorgioCZ

Why would anyone wasted his time cracking a game for hours or days and FOR FREE?
Any thoughts?

There are tons of reasons. Why would someone want to give anything to another for free? Just because it's a video game doesn't mean it has no value.

reply to post by PapagiorgioCZ


Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but are you suggesting that all cracked games have trojans embedded in them by government affiliates?


An active trojan virus is a relatively simple thing to detect.

Also, games are fun.

reply to post by PapagiorgioCZ

Why would anyone wasted his time cracking a game for hours or days and FOR FREE?

Easy answer because they can. Many people that do it just do it because they see it as a challenge to crack the encoding.

reply to post by PapagiorgioCZ


It would be dumb to say too much on here but some of the big cracking groups are quite famous online,
There is also a lot of pride in being the first to crack the game.

Not everyone is after money, and if they put backdoor gov script in someone would find it as they can compair the cracked files to the original files and compaire what has been changed/added.

PS: Downloading games funds terrorists

lemmin
reply to post by PapagiorgioCZ

 

An active trojan virus is a relatively simple thing to detect.

Only if its known! otherwise its just code, just like the rest of the game.

Most cracked games do have trojans, but I suspect they're not put there by the cracker, more likely script kiddies.
I cracked some of the very early games that I bought myself, simply so I didnt have to have the cd in the drive while playing. In those days it was fairly simple. Nowadays, game exe's are encrypted, and its not an easy thing to do, so I suspect thats why the crackers do it, so they can say - Hey! Look what I can do!

There is a surden pride in being the first to crack a "secure" game and making it available online.

You could also consider it a form of electronic sport. Some huge game company once said "our new game is so well copy-protected, its impossible to copy" - then someone went "challenge accepted!". And ever since it has been a chase of cat & mouse. Imho, it will keep computer coders on the edge to do their absolute best.

Edit to add: Seems many beat me to it

It's the philosophy of DRM Free software and gaming.

It has nothing to do with money or fame or anything like that. It's a cause and every cause has it's warriors.

Some do it to inject malicious software sure, but those are few and far between as the community won't put up with people sullying their good names.

~Tenth

reply to post by tothetenthpower


Yeah, in a dream world maybe, all the circles i have seen its for the fame only, not to be some cyber ethics warrior, most of them don't care about ethics, just who is better and faster, more an ego thing not a trying to help you out thing.

reply to post by Glz00


I've been a member on and off of those communities for well over 10 years.

It's certainly not a stick waiving contest for those of us who have a vested interest in saving the internet from corporate control.

~Tenth

tothetenthpower
reply to post by Glz00

 

I've been a member on and off of those communities for well over 10 years.

It's certainly not a stick waiving contest for those of us who have a vested interest in saving the internet from corporate control.

~Tenth

Any in perticular? I'd like to know what groups/circles remove DRM from games for Ethical reasons?
Or are you just trying to seem like you know more than you do?

PS: Good luck "saving the internet"

It wouldn't take anything so complex really. I suspect multiplayer gaming would be a much more informative venue for such spying. Your knowledge of how to play the game against the AI can start to overcome your normal patterns of decision making. Anybody who wore out a copy of freeware DOOM can probably attest to that. I started out sticking to the corners, using the shotgun to pick badguys off with deadly accuracy, being very tactical and realistic about it. But before long I got sick of that and started running through the game with different bizarre weapons- pistol, chainsaw, bazooka, punch that blows dudes up like a bazooka... just berzerkering through levels at high speed to make it interesting again.

On the other hand, in multiplayer battlefield games it's already out in the open, the player is working with and against other humans, he's subject to social pressures which also add some meaning to in game death. I think it gives you a much better look at people, with no covert action required really.


Edit to add: Don't discount the possibility that some games are cracked for profit as a form of corporate sabotage. If the number 2 game doesn't get cracked and the number 1 game does, the number 2 game can outsell number 1.

reply to post by Glz00


Originally DRM removal began because people like me thought it INSANE that I could not share my games with other people after having purchased them.

Furthermore it was necessary to do so when the first emulators for other video game systems became available.

Your snarky tone I could do without though.

It's not a matter of 'saving' the internet', it's about having control OVER the products that you purchase. Most software these days that you actually purchase is not yours, it's only 'licensed'. Which is why steam for example can cancel your account and keep ALL your games without you being able to do a damn thing about it.

Regardless of how much you paid. So, people created cracks and other bits of software to make sure that what they purchased, they could keep.

Doesn't seem unreasonable to me.

I've been a member of various different teams within these communities, the identities of these groups aren't anybody's concern.

~Tenth

tothetenthpower
reply to post by Glz00

 

Your snarky tone I could do without though.


I've been a member of various different teams within these communities, the identities of these groups aren't anybody's concern.

My tone, Well thats your problem.

And you can't I.D the group, hmm yh i thought you might say that.

I guess this can't move on from here, but i belive you are not as involved as you are trying to make out. Thats all.

The Vagabond

Edit to add: Don't discount the possibility that some games are cracked for profit as a form of corporate sabotage. If the number 2 game doesn't get cracked and the number 1 game does, the number 2 game can outsell number 1.

edit on Wed 16 Apr 2014 by The Vagabond because: (no reason given)

I have also heard of some game companys paying people to take down other companys game servers with botnets to achive the same effect.
Could be something to this.

Again tho, really don't think it's the gov, unless they want to learn the how to spam 100 rockets in a few min from me on team fortress 2

reply to post by Glz00


I don't much care if you believe me or not.

And you can't I.D the group, hmm yh i thought you might say that.

Tis not a single group. I can tell you it's none of the one's you'd suspect. I did for a short time do some work with GOG though, that was fun.

To add, I'm against pirated software if the intention is to profit from it in any form. Only entertainment IMO is fair game, for a variety of different reasons.

~Tenth

It would be much profitable for those companies not to want insane cash for a game one can run through in 3 or 5 hours at highest difficulty. Some people will never pay for such stuff but they may donate a few bucks to buy a full version from trial.
The groups like Skidrow and Reloaded are doing pretty poor job lately anyway. Quantum of bugs, crackfixes and you have to run the crack as administrator, from the desktop etc. That sux and it's weird too. SWIM would rather pay a few bucks and feel safe

PapagiorgioCZ
SWIM would rather pay a few bucks and feel safe

I don't think you have to use SWIM if your paying for the games

Very true tho, things like steam sales and humble bundle have some great sales for games, with no added malware spying on you.

For some its the only way to get the game in the country they live in as the licensed version is not available to them .

reply to post by Glz00


Yeah, it's just for the lulz of SWIY