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MechaCon: PS2 Unbreakable Gatekeeper ...Until it wasn't

IbizaPocholo

NeoGAFs Kent Brockman


The Sony PlayStation 2 contains a chip called MechaCon. Its job was to be the system's ultimate security gatekeeper, controlling disc authentication, region locking, MagicGate encryption, and KELF file decryption. For years, it was considered the last unbreakable barrier in PS2 security. Modchips could only bypass it. But buried inside Sony's redesigned Dragon MechaCon it was discovered that it was EEPROM patchable and exists a factory service feature.

In this video take a closer look at the exploit chain from the PS2's boot certification handshake through the cryptographic failures, and the tools that finally cracked it open: MechaDump and MechaPwn. The factory backdoor Sony built for their own service centers became the front door for the homebrew community.
 
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