Some use this fast track to activate Windows and Office for free, but it could end up costing you a lot

Without wanting to say it clearly for obvious reasons, the user was referring to a way to activate the licenses for the Windows operating system and its Microsoft Office office suite at no cost.

In the tweet, the user added a photograph of his computer screen, in which you can see how, using some basic commands, a window opens in which the user is given to choose between several activation methods, being able to choose permanent licenses or temporary licenses for 180 days for these two softwares.

The advice seems to solve the life of anyone looking for a free license to use Windows on their PC. So why has it sparked controversy?

In reality, what this user does with these commands is connect to an online server (not official from Microsoft) that provides these licenses. The thing is, as with any unofficial service, there is a serious risk of installing software infected by viruses, spyware, ransomware, or even with backdoors that turn your PC into part of a botnet.

Emiliano

@SoyEmiVargas

@DonJulioFrausto Of course, and that’s how you are later part of a botnet…. Better to buy an original key, they are not expensive. Or else use google docs which is free

October 12, 2024 • 04:03

71

0

The user @sabuesolinux commented on Julio’s tweet to explain why this activation method is not recommended. In short, it explains that through the codes used in the console, what is being done is giving administrator permissions for an external website to download data to our computer. Therefore, he argues that, without having complete confidence in what is downloaded, we could be opening our computer wide open to all types of malware.

The Linux Hound

@sabuesolinux

1- You run a console with maximum system permissions
2- You download an unknown text from a website with “IRM”
3- The pipe sends it to “IEX”
4- You run it as administrator

I think at this point I have little to say to you.

October 12, 2024 • 1:44 p.m.

453

1

All of this has generated a debate on the internet, with many other users pointing out that, although it is true that a user without knowledge carrying out this process could face risks, the website used by @DonJulioFrausto in his example with PowerShell corresponds to an open source project that does not involve risks. In fact, as some explain, what this user uses is Microsoft’s massgrave script, a very popular tool used by the American company itself and which does not involve any risk.

In reality, the argument that even Microsoft has used it comes only from a isolated casefor which a technical service operator used it after other conventional methods failed to activate a customer’s license.

The risk of using unofficial methods

Since the project used by @DonJulioFrausto is open source, many users argue that it is as simple as checking the source code available on GitHub to verify that it does not include any malware.

But at the end of the day, only computer experts are able to read the code on GitHub or the code that is printed to the Windows console so that they can know if there is something strange in it or not. And that’s where the risk is for ordinary users. Furthermore, and unfortunately, the fact that it is an open source project does not necessarily mean that it is free of malicious code after a hacker has managed to introduce changes to the program.

The debate, as we say, has been great. In fact, many users have criticized @sabuesolinux for stating that there is malware in the project code, because VirusTotal has detected something. Faced with this, they point out that the fact that VirusTotal raises a red flag does not imply that there is malware, since this tool often produces false positives.

In any case, there is a moral that everyone agrees on to a greater or lesser extent. Anything that involves using unofficial tools or cracks to obtain licenses carries the risk of downloading malware.