Windows XP activation algorithm has been cracked

https://www.theregister.com/2023/05/26/windows_xp_activation_cracked/

A blog post on tinyapps has revealed the hot news that nobody sane has been waiting for: the algorithm that Microsoft uses to validate Windows XP product keys has been cracked and reimplemented. As a result it’s now possible to generate valid activation codes for Windows XP, without an internet connection, even though Microsoft has turned off all the activation servers.

This is not a recommendation

But first, a word of caution and restraint. Please don’t take this article as a recommendation to run Windows XP. It wasn’t the most secure of operating systems back in 2001, and you really should not be running it in 2023 — especially not on anything that is connected to the internet.