Amazon just changed how e-books are downloaded on its older Kindles, and not in a good way

It’s no secret that, compared to other e-readers like those from Kobo or Boox, Amazon’s Kindle devices are far more locked down. That makes it difficult to customize your Kindle or manage the books you’ve bought the way you’d like without jailbreaking it.

Last year, Amazon didn’t do itself any favors to change that perception either. It made downloading e-books from your Kindle even harder and introduced a new DRM system that makes it more difficult to remove DRM (Digital Rights Management) from books you’ve bought, so you can back them up or manage them in third-party software like Calibre. Now, that same DRM system is quietly making its way to older Kindles, too.

According to The eBook Reader, Amazon has recently added its new DRM system to older Kindle devices that the company hasn’t updated in quite awhile. In particular, the new DRM system — first introduced last year with the 5.18.5 software update on 11th and 12th-generation Kindles — is now being applied to older Kindles running software version 5.16.2.1.1, without requiring a new update.

That means if you have an older Kindle, like a 7th-generation Kindle Paperwhite running version 5.16.2.1.1, Amazon has retroactively added its new DRM system to it, making it harder to remove the DRM from books you’ve bought.

How Amazon’s new Kindle DRM system works

Liberating your Kindle e-books is now impossible

What Amazon has changed with its DRM system is the file format used to download Kindle e-books. Prior to the 5.18.5 update last year, Kindle e-books were typically downloaded using KFX files. These files could then be imported into third-party software like the popular Calibre app, and users could then use tools to have the DRM removed. That made it possible to back up Kindle e-books you’d purchased and read them on any device — whether that was your Kindle, a PC, or another tablet. In many ways, it was a way to liberate your Kindle library.

However, with the new DRM system, that’s all changed. Amazon has switched to downloading e-books in the KFX-ZIP format (via Good E Reader). This format is far more secure and complex and hasn’t been cracked, meaning that if you haven’t already backed up and liberated your Kindle library into an app like Calibre, you won’t be able to do so anymore.

As I mentioned earlier, Amazon initially introduced its new DRM system only on newer 11th and 12th-generation Kindle e-readers with its latest software updates. However, now older Kindles are also being affected, since Amazon has applied the new DRM to devices running software version 5.16.2.1.1 without requiring a new update. Overall, this means Kindle models from the 7th generation through the 12th generation now have this new DRM system.

For now, it seems even older Kindle devices — like 6th-generation models and earlier — haven’t had the new DRM system added retroactively. But since Amazon has now done it for 7th-generation Kindles and newer, I wouldn’t be surprised if the company eventually expands it to them to keep its DRM protections consistent across all of its Kindle devices.