Hacks

Dangerous Xbox 360 Update Killing Homebrew

by

On Tuesday, Microsoft has released an Xbox 360 software update that overwrites the first stage bootloader of the system. Although there have been numerous software updates for Microsoft’s gaming console in the past, this is the first one to overwrite the vital boot block. Any failure while updating this will break the Xbox 360 beyond repair. Statistics from other systems have shown that about one in a thousand bootloader updates goes wrong, and unless Microsoft has a novel solution to this problem, this puts tens of thousands of Xboxes at risk. read more

Stamp Vending Machine DoS

by

It makes sense for a stamp vending machine to have some limits and not print any amount of stamps or stamps of any value. The vending machines from the Deutsche Post are a little weird though: read more

LodgeNet Reverse Engineering

by

Many hotels (at least in the USA) equip their room TVs with a “LodgeNet” entertainment system. The TV will show regular free television channels, but also have an interactive channel controlled by the remote that features video on demand and video games. read more

Amiga/Lorraine Mugs

by

Every touristy place has them: Souvenirs with given names on them. If you have an uncommon name, or a friend with an uncommon name, you might look through the whole collection – and notice that they have generic ones like “#1 FRIEND” (i case you really don’t find your friend’s name), and, sometimes, generic ones in Spanish. read more

The Xbox 360 Security System and its Weaknesses

by

After the disaster of the original Xbox, Microsoft put a lot of effort in designing what is probably the most sophisticated consumer hardware security system to date. We present its design, its implementation, its weaknesses, how it was hacked, and how to do it better next time. read more