The Amazon Kindle War Against Piracy
9 hours ago
- #DRM
- #Piracy
- #E-books
- Amazon Kindle is intensifying efforts against e-book piracy by making it difficult to download and backup purchased e-books.
- Recent software updates for 11th, 12th-gen Kindles, Kindle Scribe, and Kindle Colorsoft introduce a new, more secure DRM system.
- The new DRM uses an account secret stored in an inaccessible location, preventing decryption of e-books with existing tools.
- Issues arise with sideloaded books, showing 'Invalid ASIN' errors due to the DRM system's inability to recognize non-Amazon store books.
- Amazon has removed USB download options and updated Kindle apps to restrict downloading, allowing only reading of purchased books.
- Amazon actively patches vulnerabilities and discourages developers from creating jailbreak tools for Kindle devices.
- These measures may reassure publishers about Kindle's security, potentially increasing the number of books available on the Kindle Store.
- The focus on anti-piracy measures may alienate a small subset of users but targets the average consumer who prioritizes simplicity.