Angry Birds pirated as Mac App Store quickly succumbs to exploits and hacks

Just hours after Apple released the Mac App Store - a desktop edition of the iPhone and iPad’s digital storefront - wily hackers found a way to make some games go free.

Unscrupulous Mac users can get a bootleg edition of Angry Birds, for example, for free, simply by downloading the app from a third party website and then pasting in your App Store receipt and signature from a legitimately purchased download.

Only apps that have insufficient DRM will be susceptible to the scam, and any download running proper, Apple-approved validation will be safe from this simple exploit, says Apple expert John Gruber.

Back in December, notorious iPhone, iPod touch and iPad hacking group, Hackulous (best known for making hundreds and thousands of apps go free for ethically-flexible and jailbroken iOS users) taunted that the group was sitting on a security crack for the Mac App Store, weeks before the shop even went live.

But the team has planned to delay its release, instead waiting for the App Store to fill up with “crappy applications” before it releases its software, Kickback.

It’s always been the team’s intention, member 'Dissident' says, to give apps away for free on a “try before you buy” basis, so legitimate customers aren’t caught out on badly made, money-wasting apps. Whether that stated goal is sincere is up for debate.