Microsoft slammed for Palladium 'lies'

Critics have slated a Microsoft document on its upcoming Palladium digital rights software as containing several outright "lies".

The 1,500-word frequently asked questions (FAQs) paper gives some details about how Palladium will work and how it relates to digital rights management and the Trusted Computing Platform Alliance.

It is in part a rebuttal of the FAQ on Palladium from Dr Ross Anderson of Cambridge University, which can be found here, which is highly critical of the software.

"Explaining Palladium is going to be a long-term process," said Stuart Okin, chief security officer for Microsoft UK in an interview with vnunet.com.

"Palladium will not be compulsory; users can choose to use it or not. Ultimately it's going to make computing a lot safer.

"For example you can seal off parts of your hard drive so that the data can't be affected by malicious code. Ultimately it will help grow e-commerce by making customers feel more comfortable with transactions over the internet."

But Dr Anderson hit back. "From what I've seen the document displays a 'Clintonesque' use of language and several outright lies," he said.

Microsoft's paper aims to clear up some misconceptions about Palladium.

The software consists of three main parts: a hardware chip on the motherboard that generates keys unique to the machine; a nexus of software that communicates between the operating system and the chip; and software in the operating system to link the whole thing together.

Users won't have to use Palladium but it will probably be built into most new business applications.

The company denied that the software will be used to delete or remotely monitor pirated or copied data on a user's computer.

Microsoft stressed that at all stages the user will have control over what the software does to their data, with the user defined as the owner of the PC.

But Dr Anderson said: "You can choose to use Palladium in the same way people choose to use Windows: if you want to run a business or exchange data with anyone else you'll have to use it.

"Any software that could open a Palladium document without using the Microsoft software would be illegal in the US under the terms of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act."

Dr Anderson went on to point out that in a public presentation in July Microsoft employee Darko Kivorski answered a question in which he explained how Palladium could be used to find pirated content and isolate machines that contain it.

Palladium is scheduled to be part of Microsoft's next-generation operating system, codenamed Longhorn. No release date has yet been announced.

Meanwhile, the Palladium software will be made available to third parties for peer review as shared source code.