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Windows 10 isn't going to search & destroy all your pirated games

by Mark Tyson on 17 August 2015, 15:06

Tags: Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Windows 10

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There has been lots of gnashing of teeth in the media and in forums over the weekend concerning the updated EULA for a part of Windows 10. Following some wording changes, headlines began to appear screaming out that Microsoft had granted itself permission to trawl through your computer, disabling counterfeit software and hardware.

"Prevent you from accessing… counterfeit games"

The turmoil and excitement was due to Redmond updating Section 7b of the Microsoft Services EULA with the following paragraph:

"Sometimes you'll need software updates to keep using the Services. We may automatically check your version of the software and download software updates or configuration changes, including those that prevent you from accessing the Services, playing counterfeit games, or using unauthorized hardware peripheral devices. You may also be required to update the software to continue using the Services."

The above was taken by many reports to be a change to the license governing the whole of Windows, the MSLT (Microsoft Software License Terms). Reports and comments slated Microsoft for preparing to poke around user systems to detect and disable counterfeit games, apps and hardware willy nilly. Alphr reported that "if you use Windows 10, a Windows phone, or any of Microsoft's other services, Redmond can disable any games you've pirated or devices you've unlawfully hacked".

However the change is only relevant to Microsoft Services. The changes thus pertain only to stuff such as Xbox Live, Windows Store content (pictured above), Office 365, Skype and so-on (scroll to bottom of this page to see complete list). Microsoft has been doing similar monitoring of Xbox titles on the Xbox console for a long time, blocking pirated game copies, hacks and certain peripherals. It is not going to start monitoring your general software and hardware usage outside of these types of walled-garden services it provides.



HEXUS Forums :: 25 Comments

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windows? sorry there are already cracked version of W10 that perform better, IT gurus are not dumb……..wait even osx is not tight to hackers many people use it on DELL and HP
So for those terms not to apply we need to install a version of Windows 10 that doesn't come with those listed services?

EDIT: To call it either way seems a bit presumptuous to me, even Mary Jo Foley is saying that how Microsoft chooses to implement this new clause is an unknown at best.
Corky34
So for those terms not to apply we need to install a version of Windows 10 that doesn't come with those listed services?

EDIT: To call it either way seems a bit presumptuous to me, even Mary Jo Foley is saying that how Microsoft chooses to implement this new clause is an unknown at best.
Fo me, too.



It is not going to start monitoring your general software and hardware usage outside of these types of walled-garden services it provides.

….
That's one interpretation. It's not the only one possible from that services agreement

Oh, and Corky …. as I read it, to avoid that services agreement, just close any accounts/services you have that it covers. So, close any MS account, Skype, Consumer Office 365, etc. But you should be able to continue using Win10 without that service agreement if you don't use any of those services. You'll still be subject to the EULA, and Orivacy Policy though.

The biggest single impact of that agreement seems to me to be bringing all these disparate services under one single umbrella agreement, where you'll be subject to that agreement, with specific services also covered by service-specific sections, instead of being covered by numerous agreements, all of which ONLY relate to that service.

Oh, and note the bit in that agreement that says MS can also implement ANY changes it likes to that agreement, and that by continuing to use “services” you agree to the changes. So, if you don't like changes they make to, say, Skype, you have to close your acvount and lose XBox and (consumer) Office 365, cloud storage services (etc) too. You can't just stop using Skype.
Saracen
Oh, and note the bit in that agreement that says MS can also implement ANY changes it likes to that agreement, and that by continuing to use “services” you agree to the changes. So, if you don't like changes they make to, say, Skype, you have to close your account and lose XBox and (consumer) Office 365, cloud storage services (etc) too. You can't just stop using Skype.
I know that you didn't mean this - but I initially read that to mean that you think that Big Bad Microsoft is going to force you to use all of it's services/products if you only want a subset. So expecting a balloon popup of “You have failed to Skype for at least 60 minutes this month, so access to Excel is currently disabled”, and cue random Skype-age just to get back the features you do actually want.

With your hypothetical case, if they change the T&C's for one product to ones I dislike then I'll sure as heck stop using that particular product. What are MS going to do … sue me? :p After all, it's not as if any of their services/products are unique in the market, and if they impose Tea-Party-Dumb restrictions on use, then I'm taking my “business” elsewhere, and I'm 100% positive that I'm not alone in that.

Personally I think this just another (in a long line of) Microsoft SNAFU with respect to Windows. Oh, and I have ZERO pirated games. Actually what would bother me a heck of a lot more is those dopey b's dropping software onto my (currently hypothetical) W10 box that incorrectly identifies software as hacked/pirated/etc, then reported that I'd got pirated software to FAST etc.

As the smart … donkey … I know said "Magnus frater spectat te semper"

(And yes, *I* had to look it up too - don't ya just hate a showoff!)
Saracen
Oh, and Corky …. as I read it, to avoid that services agreement, just close any accounts/services you have that it covers. So, close any MS account, Skype, Consumer Office 365, etc. But you should be able to continue using Win10 without that service agreement if you don't use any of those services. You'll still be subject to the EULA, and Orivacy Policy though.

If, and it's a big if, Microsoft started disabling counterfeit software and hardware, It would probably be impossible to prove that you didn't use any of those listed services that come bundled with Windows 10, my guess is that Microsoft could provide logs of when and for how long you accessed each and every service as even with the strictest privacy settings Windows 10 is still communicating with Microsoft.

Arstechnica has show that even with Cortana and searching the Web from the Start menu disabled, opening Start and typing will send a request to bing.com, and even when you don't use OneDrive Windows 10 still seems to be talking to the OneDrive servers, actively not using those services in Windows 10 doesn't seem to stop you from using them, if that makes sense. :)