manekineko2 - Slashdot User

Submission + - Xbox DRM and the Red Ring of Death 1

Submitted by manekineko2 on Wednesday February 13, 2008 @10:02PM

manekineko2 writes: In the latest case warning of the perils of investing in DRM'd media, an owner of an Xbox 360 reports that after his Xbox suffered the infamous Red Ring of Death, it was replaced by a new system with a different serial number. Apparently, the possibility that an Xbox 360 could break and have to be replaced never occurred to Microsoft, because upon receiving his replacement, he found that he could no longer access any of the media he had purchased through Xbox Live. Adding insult to injury, he received the run around for months from customer service before his case was escalated, only to be informed that there is no ETA for a resolution, there is no way to receive status updates on the process, and there is no compensation that will be granted. Given claims that the Xbox 360 defect rate is as high as 1 in 3, has anyone on Slashdot gone through this as well after getting their system exchanged?

Submission + - Phone Taps in Italy Spur Use of Encryption

Submitted by manekineko2 on Monday April 30, 2007 @01:38PM

manekineko2 writes: This article on the New York Times discusses how a recent rash of high profile mobile phone taps in Italy is spurring a rush towards software encrypted phone conversations. Private conversations have been tapped and subsequently leaked to the media and have resulted in disclosures of sensitive takeover discussions, revelations regarding game-fixing in soccer, and the arrest of a prince on charges of providing prostitutes and illegal slot machines. An Italian investigative reporter stated that no on would ever discuss sensitive information on the phone now. As a result, encryption software for mobile phones has moved from the government and military world into the mainstream. Are GSM phones in the United States just waiting for a similar explosion in the use of commercially-availble wiretapping technology, and could this be the impetus to finally see widespread use of software encryption in communications?

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