Mp3 Encryption?

1. To create using the Binary Object, load the mp3, set key, encrypt the mp3 and save
using a deceptive filename. (The original, unprotected mp3 is not to be distributed with your app, just the encrypted version.)

2. To play the mp3, use the Binary Object to load the deceptive filename, set the same key, decrypt and save to a temp file with another deceptive filename.

3. Load that temp file into Direct Show, and then Play.

4. As soon as Direct Show starts to play, delete the temp file with the File Object.


My problem is that I am able to snag that temp file and copy it as long as the music is playing. (Then I rename it to .mp3 and it is playable.)


Is there any way to have Direct Show play an encrypted mp3 without writing an unprotected version to disc?


( I understand that any sound played on a users computer can be recorded but I don’t want to make it easy, and I am interested in protecting other files as well. )


Can I read an encrypted file with MMF without writing to disc with a temp file?

I've been trying to do this for a long time, and I never found a way. Except one time when for some reason, the temporary file never showed up but still played, but I have no idea how that happened, it was kind of a fluke.

At least you can delete the files once they start playing, with Quicktime movies, they must be kept on the harddisk for the duration. So you just have to hope that they don't alt-tab it while it's playing.

How do they do that in commercial games? (Make it so the movies play without being exposed).

I think commercial games just use different codecs. Or maybe they just decompress it to a Temp directory and make that directory hidden?

As far as decripting while playing... the only thing I could think of would be interperet it some how... I have NO idea how (or if) it can be done though...

with commercial games, most use bink video files, you can convert them using the free decoder but to get the source to put in your own games / apps costs a few thousand

Why are you concerned about people being able to get an mp3 (or preferably ogg) file from your application? Nobody have ever got the idea of ripping the songs from my games, despite that the source is available.

Well, I suppose it do make some sense if you actually plan to sell the soundtrack separately (Right now I just give my game soundtracks away for free). But if you sell the soundtrack separately, people will just copy it to each other, rather than try to extract it from the game.

Besides, it's really easy to just sample the soundcard's output. There's usually a "wave out" slider in the recording mixer, and you can just record the sound of that.

I agree with Nifflas, it is very easy to record the sounds currently playing on your computer. Even Sound Recorder that ships with Windows can do it. I believe encrypted files have to be decrypted before they can be played. One possibility (and I have not tried this myself so am not saying it will work), is to place the sound file inside a zip file. I noticed that I can access text documents and graphic files from inside a zip file without having ot extract the files. If you could access your sound file from inside the zip file without extracting it, that may work. But since recording sounds is a doddle, your putting yourself through a lot of work to try and protect your music.

Dawn of War uses DivX (the SDK is $5000) and the movie files are just lying inside a 'movies' folder, but they won't open up, I suspect they're encrypted. Most PC games don't use Bink. Most console games use bink. Most big PC games use DivX, and some use Bink or Smacker. I've even seen one that uses crappy old Microsoft compressors (Worms 4 mayhem).

Is there any way to make a temporary folder that will destroy itself when the program ends? The problem I have now is if the user ctrl+alt+deletes and kills the program, the unencrypted file is still in the temp folder.

yes, have a frontend that runs in the background checking for if FILE X has been termited..
intel indieo is also an old used codec. I have a DVR (digital video recorder) PC with 9 camera inputs, win 95, la-de-dah... the videos are very well encrypted with some kind of indeo codec, VLC is not able to play the videos (this is using a different PC or using it from the DVR in windows media player), nothing is able to read them but right clicking and going to properties shows that it is genuinely indeo, a very clever way they do it and i cannot figure it out. I think it is done so if a DVR is hacked then no-one can view all the footage and destroy any incriminating evidence

Sorry, don't have any advice on this. I just had to reply and agree that going to such lengths to make people spend the extra few minutes and just use Windows Sound Recorder to rip your MP3s really isn't worth it.

If you are worried that people will use your music in their games, you should look into copyright law instead.
You can't stop them, but you can just ask them not to....+ threaten to take actions against them via laws if they keep claiming your content as their own.

Edit: In fact, spending all this effort is so not worth it, you should instead take a minute and good the story of Sony and their rootkit: "Sony Rootkit" will probably give you a few good reads.
Here, I did it for you:
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&ct=res&cd=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia .org%2Fwiki%2F2005_Sony_BMG_CD_copy_protection_sca ndal&ei=KCj7RdGNEI-KjAHAp8i1DA&usg=__x7O2V8tBKb9dno2ZEKclxkqwBrc=&sig 2=q8onRTS1cY5NPHeQpDUj4Q
Quote: "As a result, a number of parties have filed lawsuits against Sony BMG; the company ended up recalling all the affected CDs; and greater public attention was drawn to the issue of commercially-backed spyware."

So in order for MMF to read an encrypted file, that file must be decrypted and saved to disc as a temp file?

Encryption and decryption is actually quick and easy with MMF. It’s learning how to do it and how to properly use it that takes time and trouble. That’s why I come to the forums.

:)

Grrrr.

I come to these forums looking for help.

I am looking for help with encryption and decryption.

So far all I see is a bunch of babble.

?

Well, as we already mentioned, it's impossible unless you specifically pay someone to create an extension for you that allows you to play an encrypted file without having to expose it first. There's absolutely no other solution as long as you're dealing with mp3 files.

Why do they need to be mp3's? If you use the superior ogg format, you can use MMF2's internal "play sample", that will not expose the files.

But even with non-exposed music files, people can just record the soundcard output, and there's no way you can prevent that unless you make sure that sound effects are constantly played at the same time as the music (just playing a sound effect every now and then won't work, as someone can make multiple recordings, and use the parts from each recording where a sound effect didn't play).

I wouldn't label the discussion in this thread as babble, after all, the information which you're looking for has been given. I'm curious why you need to deny access to the mp3 files so bad. If you tell us that, we might be able to come up with another solution.

Um . . .

Thanks for your reply Niffles.

You are saying that I must first save the decrypted file to disc as a temp file and then open it with MMF?

I am asking if there is another way.

Am I doing it right?

(If you read my original post you know that I understand that every sound that a computer makes can be recorded,)

I am looking for help with encryption and decryption using MMF.

Mp3 protection was just an example that I thought that many users could relate to.

Forget mp3.

What is the best way to do encryption and decryption?

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You are saying that I must first save the decrypted file to disc as a temp file and then open it with MMF?

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Yes.

That is unless the same extension can decrypt the file, store it within the RAM (not on the hard drive), and play it. I don't think any such extensions are available, you'll have to pay someone for creating one for you.

As long as there are two extensions involved, one for decrypting, and one for playing, you will have to expose the file.

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If you read my original post you know that I understand that every sound that a computer makes can be recorded

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Yeah, sorry about that. I know I skip reading parts of posts too often.

I posted, what I thought was a technical question, and I was looking for a technical answer.

All I got were subtle flames.

And I still don’t know if my method of using MMF’s encrypt and decrypt functions are very good.

Anyone?

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Am I doing it right?

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Yes. Your method of storing the file in the application's temp path, in order to read it with another extension, is indeed the only possible option you have right now. You can not protect the files more than you already do.

When you decrypt a file, you have to store it on the hard drive in order for another extension to be able to read that file. It will have to end up in the application's temp path, or some place else on the hard drive.

For more protection, I once again recommend you to hire someone to create an extension. I have done that when I have needed functionality that the current MMF2 extensions doesn't offer.