Password Protection in MS Word BROKEN!

[Xeen]

People have figured out a very simple way to bypass password protection in Microsoft Word documents. So much for Office 2003 being the most secure and DRMed Office ever.

http://news.com.com/2100-1029-5136913.html

By the way, this is the 2nd time in less than half a year that Microsoft's password security in their software has come under fire. In July, Swiss computer scientists reduced the time it takes to crack a Windows password from 1 minute 41 seconds to 13.6 seconds. A simple way of explaining why its so easy is that it just sucks!

While most modern applications and especially operating systems include random encrypted characters in passwords, Microsoft's software does not. This means that any two passwords that are the same will have the same encryption, making them uber-easy to crack.

http://news.com.com/2100-1009_3-5053063.html?tag=fd_top

[Refalm]

This is really a good thing. This DRM stuff was getting scary, because Microsoft tries a complete lock-in with Office 2003.

For example, you need Windows to read an DRM-encrypted e-mail. At least GPG/PGP is for Mac, Linux, BSD and even Windows.

[Calum]

so long as microsoft is involved with computer security, it will be a farce. the question is, will consumers begin to distrurt those who oppose freedom to increase their bottom line, or will they simply distrust computers and technology?

[KernelPanic]

quote:Originally posted by Calum is NOT a moderator:
so long as microsoft is involved with computer security, it will be a farce. the question is, will consumers begin to distrurt those who oppose freedom to increase their bottom line, or will they simply distrust computers and technology?

Microsooft have a massive pool of people, clever and important people, who think security through obscurity actually works. How bloody ridiculous.
It just doesn't it require no elegant proof, no theory, no doctrine, no equation, no sine wave, no three-legged donkey it just does not!

I find myself lost when faced with this idiocy/indoctrination whatever, but a change is coming I feel it, i can hear the whispers.

[ January 08, 2004: Message edited by: Tux ]

[WMD]

I remember, ages ago, in the Word 97 era, you could open locked files by opening them in Notepad.  No real encryption at all.  AND, you could find and remove the password, and view it in Word.      

[rklesla]

quote:Originally posted by WMD:
I remember, ages ago, in the Word 97 era, you could open locked files by opening them in Notepad.  No real encryption at all.  AND, you could find and remove the password, and view it in Word.          

Is this still possible for word 2003?..

It's cheaper to not change code, but tell the public its new and improved.

[Sirius]

And then charge them for it, along with all those other features that 0.1% of people use...

[WMD]

quote:Originally posted by Microsoft's Caretaker:


Is this still possible for word 2003?..  

Nah, the hack for Word 2003 requires a hex editor.  97 only need a text editor