Update for Windows Vista, 7, 8 and 8.1 disables SafeDisc drm

A security update for Windows Vista, 7, 8, and 8.1, among others, disables the SafeDisc driver service for security reasons. SafeDisc has been used in countless games as DRM in the past. Users can still manually enable the driver service.

According to Microsoft, a computer or network with the copy protection driver is vulnerable to a malicious user or a virus, so update KB3086255 has been released. Microsoft has posted instructions on the update’s knowledgebase page for users who want to run the Safedisc driver temporarily or permanently. This can be done via the command prompt or by making some changes to the registry. Microsoft does recommend that users take “additional steps” to protect their computers if they choose to enable the driver anyway. Users may also be able to simply skip the update.

Among the games that use versions of Safedisc are several Command & Conquer games, Diablo 2, Dungeon Keeper 2, and various versions of The Sims. GameBurnWorld has an incomplete list of games and their copy protections. In August, the news also came out that Safedisc and SecuRom do not work on Windows 10 without a detour.