Subj : Windows XP activation has been cracked  for those desperate enoug
To   : All
From : TechnologyDaily
Date : Fri May 26 2023 15:00:04

Windows XP activation has been cracked  for those desperate enough to still 
use it

Date:
Fri, 26 May 2023 13:47:37 +0000

Description:
Because Microsoft doesnt validate product keys anymore  not officially  this 
could be a useful workaround for a niche set of users.

FULL STORY
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The activation algorithm for Windows XP has been cracked, so those stuck not 
being able to get the ancient operating system working can now do so  and 
yes, there are folks who still use this OS. 

Granted, its a seriously slim  vanishingly so  niche of Windows users, and 
well come back to that. For most of us, though, this is just a curiosity. 

As The Register reports, the encryption algorithm for Windows XP product 
activation has been cracked and reimplemented, with the details provided via 
a tinyapps blog post. 

This means anyone can now generate a valid product key to install and 
activate Windows XP offline. 

Microsoft turned off the servers required to activate Windows XP long ago, so 
you cant use a genuine old product key to activate the OS. Well, not online 
anyway, though from what we can see on Reddit, Microsoft still facilitated a 
product activation on the phone back in 2020  and The Register reckons this 
way still works. Analysis: Desperate times, desperate measures 

So, if you dont want to get on the phone and try to persuade Microsoft to 
activate your Windows XP when you have a genuine product key that cant be 
validated online anymore, you can simply do-it-yourself at home (or in the 
office) with no fuss. 

Why would you ever want to use Windows XP, though? Yes, it was a much-loved 
operating system without a doubt, for many reasons  mainly that it was such a 
big step forward for performance, and the quality of the interface, over its 
predecessor  but its obviously ridiculously outdated at this point in time. 

However, some people must remain on Windows XP due to legacy software or 
hardware that wont work with any more modern Microsoft operating system. 
These are most likely businesses, who might, say, have eye-wateringly 
expensive machines that only work with software that runs on XP and hasnt 
been updated in forever. 

In those cases, this crack could prove very useful, but clearly, anyone 
running Windows XP is exposing themselves to a whole lot of potential pain in 
terms of the vulnerabilities present in the OS. Which is why if you are in 
this boat, whatever you do, keep that Windows XP installation offline for 
obvious reasons. 

Are you now wondering how many Windows XP users are still out there? 
According to the latest from analytics firm Statcounter, XP amounts to a 
0.35% userbase out of all Windows versions (not all that far behind Windows 
8, Microsofts most recently defunct OS which is on 1.28% as of April 2023). 

Cracking rusty old Microsoft operating systems appears to be quite the trend 
at the moment. You may recall that Windows 95s (relatively flimsy) activation 
was recently hacked, with a twist  ChatGPT was fooled into generating keys 
that worked with the OS (in a small number of cases).



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Link to news story:
https://www.techradar.com/news/windows-xp-activation-has-been-cracked-for-thos
e-desperate-enough-to-still-use-it


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