The source code for the 09 Sky card algorithms and keys has been released. It is now available on the Internet and also on UK and European Bulletin Board Systems.
A full working version of the 09 code was released as part of a file on how to build a pirate smart card. The file, named SKY09PUB.ZIP, was described as "The Big Publication". The code, written in C and assembly language now gives everyone the software tools to build their own card. It also provides an view into the operation of the Sky card.
The slide to catastrophe began on Christmas Eve 1994 when the first 09 Omigod program was released. Within a few hours there was a number of variations. The title for the story in Hack Watch News was "Sky Scrooged". Though in some respects the situation is similar to the release of the 07 code last year, there are some fundamental differences.
When the 07 code was released as part of the SEASON/OMIGOD hack, Sky had the 09 cards in position. The 07 SEASON program was launched in March 1994 but Sky had been issuing the 09 cards since February of that year. The lifetime of the 07 SEASON hack was roughly two months. It could be argued that the 07 SEASON hack was living on borrowed time.
This release, however, is very different. Sky does not have the 0A cards in position. As a result, they can only respond to this by implementing further Electronic Countermeasures, (ECMs), on their present card. Since the actual code is now public knowledge, the effectiveness of these ECMs is severely limited.
To date, all of the upgrades for the pirate cards and SEASON programs have been trickled down. When an ECM was implemented, it took a few hours for the ECM to be examined and the cards to be updated. The SEASON hacks were generally updated within twenty four hours or so. This time lag benefited Sky. They could at least claim that their ECMs were successful, however briefly.
With the public knowledge of the code, any future ECMs would be of limited duration and effect. Whereas before the knowledge of the algorithms was confined to a few hundred people, the number now is in the region of thousands. Considering that the code is being spread by Internet and by Bulletin Board Systems, it seems that Sky and News Datacom have once more lost any effective control over their system.
The computer file, being electronic information can be transmitted via telephone. Short of cutting all international telephone lines and internet feeds, there is nothing sane that Sky and News Datacom can do. Of course the most obvious reaction from Sky and their legal department would be to try and minimise the impact by representing the release as being of less significance than it really is. This is called a minimalising rationalisation or a lie depending on whose side you are on.
Sky's requirement for a new smart card has become all the more apparent. According to some, the new card was expected to be in place by July 1st. Others claimed that Sky would try and ride out the storm with their present 09 card and would only upgrade in September. In old piracy terms, Sky have been holed below the water line. If they do not have the 0A card ready to ship then they are going to find out just what Davy Jones' locker holds.