Amazon and DRM changes

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Pajamaman

I'm a little out of the loop. So it seems from what I've read that even though KFX DRM was cracked, the community got fed up doing it because Amazon always quickly fixed the crack. So the community instead turned to cracking DRM on older formats (Az3) available via download on the PC app.

However, Amazon has started to stop Az3 downloads for new books. This means the community will have to crack DRM on KFX, which Amazon will counter.

Will it become as bad as Amazon shutting down Jailbreak loopholes? Can DRM loopholes be practically shutdown, like jailbreaks? I do think that far more resources will be thrown at cracking KFX DRM. It is far more serious than the need for a jailbreak. It will become a game of whackamole. But can the mole be effectively, practically blocked? Will the community run out of loopholes?

The problem is that Amazon changes the DRM on KFX very soon after the DRM has been cracked. SO at the moment, it's not worth the hassle to try to remove the DRM on KFX. It wasn't because of KFX DRM that Mobi & KF8 got cracked. They were cracked first and then after KFX was introduced and enough became known about it was it worked on until it became too much of a hassle.

Amazon has decided that eBook published on or after January 3rd, 2023 that you will need to latest version of KindleforPC/Mac to be able to download them and they will only download in KFX. The community will not be working on cracking KFX because of this. You either don't buy any eBooks from Amazon published Jan 3 or later or you buy a Kindle device to be able to download using Download and Transfer via USB for eBooks Jan 3 or later.

If you are not wanting to buy eBooks specific to Amazon for those published Jan 3 or later, you could buy the ePub version and remove any DRM from there.

The real problem will come if Amazon will stop allowing KF8 to be downloaded using Download and Transfer via USB and make it download KFX. You might get away with still downloading if you have an older Kindle that supports KF8 but not KFX such as a K3/KK or Kindle Touch.

[ownedbycats]

The difficulty of breaking KFX was described by @jhowell here:

Amazon has implemented around 40 different DRM algorithms for KFX. They are built into the various Kindle apps and device firmware as highly obfuscated code.

Each algorithm is identified with the letter V followed by a number. So far DeDRM handles V1 though V10. Amazon is currently using V11, which DeDRM attempts to decrypt but does not do correctly.

As things stand now anyone who does figure out how to defeat the current V11 DRM has a strong incentive to keep it to themself. Keeping it quiet would mean that at least they could make use of it. Making it known to the world would just result in Amazon switching to V12, causing all of that hard work to be for nothing.

In order to defeat KFX DRM in DeDRM all of the thirty or so remaining DRM algorithms would need to be reverse engineered. If any are gotten wrong, which is likely without a way to test them properly, Amazon would immediately use that one for now and then keep adding more new ones over time.

Even if someone managed to get all of the algorithms correct, DRM removal would only work until Amazon deployed software with more new algorithms and blocked downloads to the older software.

[JSWolf]

I just downloaded the two January 2033 Amazon First Reads books, They came in KF8 an I was able to remove the DRM. I did this via Download and transfer via DRM.

[Pajamaman]

Originally Posted by jhowell

If this change rolls out for everyone then you won't be able to keep your device offline forever if you want to use KU.

I don't see an issue with this. To use KU, I think it's reasonable to have to connect to download new books and upload reading stats.

[Pajamaman]

@ownedbycats. Thx for clarification. It seems to me that the community will always be able to break DRM, but it's pointless. KFX will always be ahead of the game. So Amazon books will be blocked in the future. As this becomes the norm, the big publishers will demand the same level of protection from all ebook vendors who wish to sell their books.

[stumped]

Every book in my content and devices now shows unavailable for usb Xfer... Even stuff I purchased years ago,
E.g.
Acquired on 26 December 2015
This title is unavailable for download and transfer

I scrolled through my entire past purchases library and it's 100% blocked

It was not like this earlier in the week.

Can someone else check their library and confirm that it's not just me and I'm not going mad

[Terisa de morgan]

Originally Posted by stumped

Every book in my content and devices now shows unavailable for usb Xfer... Even stuff I purchased years ago,
E.g.
Acquired on 26 December 2015
This title is unavailable for download and transfer

I scrolled through my entire past purchases library and it's 100% blocked

It was not like this earlier in the week.

Can someone else check their library and confirm that it's not just me and I'm not going mad

At this moment, my purchased books can be downloaded. Tomorrow, who knows?

[stumped]

Treasure Island (AmazonClassics Edition)
Robert Louis Stevenson
Acquired on 16 August 2017
This title is unavailable for download and transfer

Originally Posted by Terisa de morgan

At this moment, my purchased books can be downloaded. Tomorrow, who knows?

I was checking via Android Chrome browser, but that should not be a factor.

Luckily my old purchases are safely saved in calibre.

I'd gone to see if my prime reading loans were affected, after reading that other folks ku books were blocked, and I saw that everything had the same message attached. Even Treasure Island which surely is PD, but maybe I'd bought a 99p nicely formatted version.

Treasure Island (AmazonClassics Edition)
Robert Louis Stevenson
Acquired on 16 August 2017
This title is unavailable for download and transfer

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by stumped

Every book in my content and devices now shows unavailable for usb Xfer... Even stuff I purchased years ago,
E.g.
Acquired on 26 December 2015
This title is unavailable for download and transfer

I scrolled through my entire past purchases library and it's 100% blocked

It was not like this earlier in the week.

Can someone else check their library and confirm that it's not just me and I'm not going mad

Mine now shows the 3 KU loans I currently have as not being available for Download and transfer but all my purchased titles still show as available. A change from yesterday when the KU loans were not flagged.

[Sirtel]

Mine are still available as well.

[hleo12]

Originally Posted by stumped

Treasure Island (AmazonClassics Edition)
Robert Louis Stevenson
Acquired on 16 August 2017
This title is unavailable for download and transfer

I was checking via Android Chrome browser, but that should not be a factor.

I think that's just their website in mobile version.
I also don't have the transfer via usb option when I use my phone's browser, but if I choose the show desktop version, the download option is there.

[ownedbycats]

Originally Posted by hleo12

I think that's just their website in mobile version.
I also don't have the transfer via usb option when I use my phone's browser, but if I choose the show desktop version, the download option is there.

Is the option just absent, or does it say it's unavailable?

[hleo12]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

Is the option just absent, or does it say it's unavailable?

The option is just absent on the mobile version of the website.

I'm assuming it's on purpose since it's a mobile and Amazon (or anyone else for that matter) isn't expecting us to use USB-on-the-go just to transfer a book. Might as well turn your phone into a hotspot and download it directly on your Kindle.

[jhowell]

Originally Posted by hleo12

The option is just absent on the mobile version of the website.

I'm assuming it's on purpose since it's a mobile and Amazon (or anyone else for that matter) isn't expecting us to use USB-on-the-go just to transfer a book. Might as well turn your phone into a hotspot and download it directly on your Kindle.

For me the option to download is missing if I use Chrome on my Samsung tablet. It does appear and works properly if I use Safari on my iPad.

And downloads are still allowed for me for KU books at the moment.

[Ma'am-I-Am]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I just downloaded the two January 2033 Amazon First Reads books, They came in KF8 an I was able to remove the DRM. I did this via Download and transfer via DRM.

But this was a purchase, right? Purchases can still be d/l'd.

As far as I can see, borrows via KU can no longer be d/l'd regardless of published date. I have more than one published and/or borrowed before 2023 and none can be d/l'd anymore.