An MIT graduate student has successfully dismantled Xbox's security system and published (after what appears to have been some discussion with Microsoft and EFF lawyers) the results. Bottom line - Xbox security relies on a "chain of trust" built on a "seed of trust" key that is included in a physically secure, secret boot block and which is identical in all shipped hardware.

Where Microsoft goes wrong in the Xbox security system is that although it camouflages the existence of the secret boot block via a not secret boot block, and makes it very difficult and expensive to access the secret block (it's hard coded into the southbridge system ASIC, which is built in 0.13 micron), the block itself is sent in clear over the HyperTransport northbridge-southbridge bus. Thus, by monitoring and analysing this traffic (bunnie tells how, it involves a belt sander, don't ask) you get the key.

Source: The Register

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