While the internet has been rumbling in recent weeks over Sony's Rootkit DRM for Windows, one unannounced feature of the software installed apparently included open-source code to apply Apple's FairPlay DRM to included tracks.
The inactive code apparently supports conversion into FairPlay from a wide variety of file formats: MP3, MAV, RAW audio, and standard unprotected audio CDs. A breakdown of chicken/egg reverse engineering is found on this blog entry.
CNET's John Borland says Princeton researchers found the code while deconstructing the rootkit.
The use of FairPlay would allow copy-protected music to be played on iPods, which isn't possible with other DRM schemes.
Apple this week unveiled seven products, including an iPhone 17e, an iPad Air with the M4 chip, updated MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models, a new Studio Display, a higher-end Studio Display XDR, and an all-new MacBook Neo that starts at just $599.
iPhone 17e features the same overall design as the iPhone 16e, but it gains Apple's A19 chip, MagSafe for magnetic wireless charging and magnetic...
Apple is planning to launch an all-new "MacBook Ultra" model this year, featuring an OLED display, touchscreen, and a higher price point, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
Gurman revealed the information in his latest "Power On" newsletter. While Apple has been widely expected to launch new M6-series MacBook Pro models with OLED displays, touchscreen functionality, and a new, thinner design...
Benchmarks for the new MacBook Neo surfaced today, and unsurprisingly, CPU performance is almost identical to the iPhone 16 Pro. The MacBook Neo uses the same 6-core A18 Pro chip that was first introduced in the iPhone 16 Pro, but it has one fewer GPU core.
The MacBook Neo earned a single-core score of 3461 and a multi-core score of 8668, along with a Metal score of 31286.
Here's how the...
