Microsoft Office 2013 has already been cracked by the Moscow-based company ElcomSoft, months before the program is even set to officially launch.
According to Elcomsoft's Sept. 26 blog post, the company has developed two separate software tools: Elcomsoft Advanced Office Password Recovery, and Elcomsoft Distributed Password Recovery.
The product page for Distributed Password Recovery reads, "Forgetting a password to your personal email folder or a family budget can be annoying. Halting the work because of the lost password causes immediate monetary loss. Advanced Office Password Recovery recovers, replaces, removes, or circumvents instantly passwords protecting or locking documents created with Microsoft Office applications."
The Advanced Password Recovery is aimed towards "forensic and government agencies, data recovery and password recovery services and corporate users with multiple workstations connected over a LAN or the internet."
Elcomsoft cracked MS Office 2013 by using "smart attacks" as opposed to "brute force", implying the use of "dictionary attacks, masks, and advanced permutations." Office 2013 uses a stronger and slower encryption, ruling out other strategies for the company.
Under the new subscription model, Office 365 Home Premium will cost $99.99/year, and Office 365 Small Business Premium will cost $149.99/year. If Office users opt for the traditional licensed offering, Office Home & Student 2013 will be priced at $139.99, Office Home & Business 2013 at $219.99, and Office Professional 2013 at $399.99. Office Small Business Premium offers its suite for $12.50/month and can be used by up to 25 employees.
Microsoft Office 2013 does not have an official release date yet, but the preview version of the suite can be downloaded on Microsoft's official website now.
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