Accessing a protected DVD

[Saint Jack]

I wonder if there is anyone out there who can help me with this. I've got an old DVD that has a number of videos on it (in .wma format) that I'd like to keep but the problem is that on start-up I'm prompted to ensure I have an internet connection before entering a 'user name' and 'password' that I don't have. I believe the originator of the DVD is long gone so I can't go back to them.


I've tried a couple of programmes that are supposed to remove/by-pass copy protection but these have had no effect. Can anyone suggest how I can access this DVD to copy the videos. Many thanks

[Radix]

............

[Saint Jack]

Radix: I've tried a number of programmes that remove copy protection, including DVDfab Passkey, and although they all recognize the correct DVD drive they all fail to recognise the DVD i.e. "insert DVD now etc." I'll keep trying.


LookingForAJob (me too!) There are many file formats on the disc, these are;


XML Document
WinZip File
Shockwave Flash object
Cascading Style Sheet Document
GIF Image
JPEG Image
HTML Document
DWT File
WMA/Video (these are the files I'd like to copy and keep)


All suggestions gratefully appreciated, anymore or anyone else?

[geoff1248]

So you have in your possession a DVD which is security protected and you wish to crack this security.
There are a number of ways of cracking this security but I really don't think these methods should be discussed in a forum such as this.
For all we know this DVD may contain the third parties personal details such as bank accounts and passwords.
I appreciate that things may well be exactly as you say but I do not think that it is in the best interest of PPRUNE to advise on such security details.
Sorry guys, flame me if you wish, but some of my DVDs and flash drives are password protected for very good reasons. I certainly wouldn't want them falling into someone else's hands.

[Saint Jack]

geoff1248: Two very good points (the ownership of the information on the disc and the ethics of trying to access it) but let me explain from my point-of-view. The disc was given to me willingly by the originator and therefore it's my property, i.e. the physical disc and the content. The information I'm trying to retrieve is known to me (certainly not "third parties personal details such as bank accounts and passwords) and is related to my work which is why I'd like to keep it, of course I should have down-loaded it when I could but you know what they say about hindsight.

Basically, I agree that discussing methods of by-passing copy protection on a public forum such as this one may not be in the interests of the community at large. BUT, it will not have escaped your notice that there are many public websites that discuss this topic together with suggested software and video tutorials.

No, I won't flame you, I fully appreciate and respect your reasons to protect your DVD's and flash drives.

[Bushfiva]

You can look at the file names but you cannot copy them off?? I can't think of any DVD scheme that supports that.


So are the files individually encrypted, rather than the disk itself?


Finally, you say it goes online to check the decryption key. Do you know who it goes online to? i.e. can you trap the destination URL or IP address?

[geoff1248]

SAINT JACK: As you correctly say there are a number of sites which detail how to attempt to break security measures on IT based media. My point is that this site should not be one of them.
I have absolutely no reason to doubt your reasons for wishing to access this data. However, what would you reaction be if someone posted that they had forgotten their credit card PIN and asked for some software to break it for them. Once again it can be done and there are sites which will show how, but should PPRUNE detail how? I think not.
I think the information you are seeking can be viewed in video format on a certain well known site.

[Saint Jack]

Bushfiva: Yes, I can see the individual files (videos in .wma format) on the disc. I can also save them individually to my hard disk but the protection is automatically copied with the file and when I attempt to open it, from my HDD, I still get the prompt to, a) go online, b) user name and, c) password. So it would appear, as you suggested, that the video files are individually encrypted.

Regarding your suggestion that I trace the online destination URL or IP address - it will not have escaped your attention that I'm working on the very limit of my computer knowledge - I'll have to put this task on my to-do list.


LookingForAJob: See above, this answers most of your queries. I'm currently experimenting with different players, including MPC and VLC, and converting individual files to various formats. So far I've been able to overcome the protection with some formats but the only result when playing is multi-coloured psychedelic snow without any audio.


Everyone: I'm going to defer to geoff1248's concerns and desist from creating a thread that offers guidance and instructions to overcome built-in safety and security features. Many thanks to all of you.

[RamonBadger]

"Yes, I can see the individual files (videos in .wma format) "


WMA files are AUDIO files, not video
Look again