iBooks FairPlay DRM finally cracked

So this is pretty interesting. A MobileRead forum poster is claiming that Apple’s “FairPlay” iBooks DRM has finally been cracked. The Digital Rights Management has previously kept users from reading purchased iBooks content on non-iOS devices.

This means that, with the appropriate software, users will now be able to essentially “unlock” their iBooks to make them compatible with other devices that recognize the ePub eBook format…

MobileRead member pdurrant writes:

“It is now possible to remove the DRM from epub ebooks bought in Apple’s iBooks store. “Brahms”, has recently released a new version, 3.3, of his Requiem software, which has been able to remove DRM from music and videos bought in the iTunes Music Store for a long time. This new version can also remove the DRM from Apple’s epub format ebooks.”

We aren’t linking to the DRM removal tools and won’t be providing any tutorials on how to use them (legal issues). Nevertheless, it’s interesting that users now have the option — with a little work — to read their iBooks eBooks on other devices.

A word of advice though, if you are going to get in on this action, you better act fast. We expect Apple to release an iTunes update shortly to combat the new exploit.

[AppAdvice]