In eight days, or so he claims, hacker muslix64 managed to break the AACS encryption on HD DVD drive so as to play the films on any HD DVD software or simply "archive" your discs in case the physical copy breaks. As muslix64 explains, he utilized the Xbox 360 HD DVD drive as his player of choice (read the full thread to see). Wow!
The hack is useless, however, unless you have the encryption key for the disc; however, as he was able to find certain keys, that task is not impossible. In the FAQ for the program, muslix64 provides an explanation as to how the keys are encrypted. As Team Xbox points out, the AACS encryption is identical to what is found on a Blu-ray disc, so a way to rip those other next-gen discs is inevitable.
The security on HD DVD and Blu-ray has long been touted as one of the reasons for movie studios to start looking past that antiquated DVD format, and something that the studios thought would be unbreakable. Never underestimate the ingenuity of someone told "no."
Of course, there is another, more involved way to backup HD DVD discs, if you're a masochist. Video of the hacker's achievement, decrypting Full Metal Jacket, can be found embedded after the break.
[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
