360 demo theft possible piracy floodgate opener – Boot ..

A worrying situation for Microsoft is emerging over the holiday period, with reports of self-booting Xbox 360 software being shared across the web, painting a picture of increased pressure on the console's defenses against piracy.

From what we can gather, an in-store demo pod was targeted by hackers seeking to steal the demonstration software it contained. The software has been taken, copied and leaked onto the Internet – though this isn't the whole story. Seemingly, the demo disc is a self-booting DVD-R and is fully copyable and will play on any retail Xbox 360. The wider possible consequences facing Microsoft following the release of this unprotected code are dire.