Bypassing License Validation in a Desktop Application — A Deep Dive into a Real-World Exploit
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Summary
A security researcher has outlined a method for bypassing licence validation in a commercial desktop application, allowing an attacker to reuse licence keys on unauthorised machines.
The application tied each licence key to a unique hardware identifier, in this case the MAC address, but the researcher was able to extract the key from the application’s process memory, identify the correct MAC address using verbose error messages that leaked system information, and then either spoof the MAC address or use it on another system.
The vulnerability not only exposes the software to piracy and license abuse but also compromises the licensing model entirely, impacting revenue and customer trust.
In-memory encryption or obfuscation could have prevented an attacker from extracting the license key from memory, less verbose error messages would have prevented the leaks of system information, while binding the license to a less spoofable hardware identifier such as a TPM or motherboard UUID would also have strengthened protection.