Intel has confirmed Blu-ray HDCP encryption is cracked after admitting a leaked master key is the real deal.

High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) copy protection technology is designed to protect high-definition video content as it travels across digital interfaces. The technology was developed by Digital Content Protection, a subsidiary of Intel, and licensed to HDTV, set-top boxes and Blueray disk manufacturers and the like.

A leaked key, now confirmed as genuine, was published online on Tuesday via Pastebin, and quickly spread around the web. The master key creates a mechanism to strip the encryption from, for example, a HD satellite TV broadcast and a DVR, at least in theory. The availability of a master key effectively renders the key revocation feature built into HDCP impotent.