Gamesradar reports that a UMD dumper has been released that allows PSP users to move data from inserted UMD discs to the console's memory sticks.Hackers recently figured out how to rip PSP games from UMD to the ISO format for download from the web, where a number are now readily available - the one obstacle left for hackers is a way to run the files from the memory sticks.
Gamesradar speculate that a utility to do this is just days away and could spark a "PSP file-sharing revolution", but a leading developer of homebrew games for the Playstation platform has pointed out that this will be a monumental task for hackers, and even if it's successful, would only open up piracy for a very small percentage of PSP's that were released in Japan:
"Even if you put the UMD game on the memory stick," Gilbert added, "that binary is not only encrypted, but also programmed to load from the UMD. So obviously, it's not going to boot from the memory stick."
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Furthermore, no PSPs with firmware earlier than version 1.5 were ever released to the US market, according to Gilbert, who notes that 1.0 editions were only available in Japan, and even then in limited quantities. "Plus, once you have a 1.5, there's no way to downgrade it to a 1.0," added Gilbert. "So the base of installed, exploitable units is limited, and shrinking every day.
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