Any 3rd party protection will be cracked sooner or later and then it'll be done just as easily as it was done previously.
Mora,
Good luck then.
It isn't just Starforce which does that, but many many other programs.
They might not stick in a new software device, but they sure might put in other stuff.
Besides legal wise, it is part of the program and the program which end user license agreement you have to agree prior to install.
Basically the problem with Starforce is that it is so visible and takes longer time to verify the disc than with the others.
Caughts people's attention much better than Safedisc, Securerom, custom protections..
Alot of the high end software has quite interesting copy protections, which some would rate intrusive just like the Starforce.
Works much better than Steam though, since you don't need to be connected to the internet for it work.
...and why do you people use the Windows or few of the other MS products?
It sends your hardware configuration to Microsoft, including unique device ID's.