Travel Technology - Buy a CD, get a rootkit as a bonus?

http://www.sysinternals.com/blog/2005/10/sony-rootkits-and-digital-rights.html

Seems Sony *might* be installing root kits on people's computers if they buy CDs that have their own media player on the CD.

Keep that auto-play turned off on your CD drives, everyone!

And speaking of Rootkits, for those that know what they are... Rootkits : Subverting the Windows Kernel (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0321294319/) is a must read.

More on the matter: http://www.freedom-to-tinker.com/?p=919

http://www.f-secure.com/weblog/archives/archive-112005.html

I experienced this issue first hand a couple weeks back when I put the latest switchfoot CD in and wasn't paying attention (blindly clicking OK). It installed the Sony copy protection software. It took me close to 2 hours to get my machine back to normal. Boy was I hot after that... :mad:

This sounds like a lawsuit waiting to happen. :mad:

Heh, I saw a bunch of unreadable software on the latest Switchfoot CD myself! Of course it wasn't any bother to me, since the rootkit does not affect my Mac PowerBook whatsoever! Great tunes on that CD BTW! :p

Heh, I saw a bunch of unreadable software on the latest Switchfoot CD myself! Of course it wasn't any bother to me, since the rootkit does not affect my Mac PowerBook whatsoever! Great tunes on that CD BTW! :p
Ya, ya, rub it in. :o

Ya, ya, rub it in. :o :D Just waiting for you to make that transition from the dark side to Macintosh! :D ;)

I will gladly start buying cds again the day they start making them containing nothing but music and I can do with it what I want. I hate you sony and microsoft drm.

:D Just waiting for you to make that transition from the dark side to Macintosh! :D ;)

Just because the box is white doesn't make it the "bright side" :D

Just because the box is white doesn't make it the "bright side" :DLOL! There's still hope for you Scott! :D

Looks as if the bad press has given Sony second thoughts.. El Reg is reporting that Sony is having second thoughts (http://www.theregister.com/2005/11/03/sony_rootkit_drm/).

There is a paragraph in the article that says that Sony hasn't had a single complaint about the problem. That isn't surprising since Sony's customer support is abysmal. It close to impossible to try and get a complaint through to them via web, email or phone.

Edited to add: Here a link (http://updates.xcp-aurora.com/) to the software to remove this rootkit.

For those that care about this issue, my post #12 is not totally accurate. The link is for software to unhide the rootkit. If you want to delete the rootkit entirely you must go to the Sony BMG problem reporting (http://cp.sonybmg.com/xcp/english/form8.html) form, fill out the form and then wait for an email. By following the email instructions you will eventually get a link to a web site that uses an activeX control to remove the rootkit. All-in-all pretty cumbersome and but it does appear to work.

http://www.sysinternals.com/blog/2005/10/sony-rootkits-and-digital-rights.html

Seems Sony *might* be installing root kits on people's computers if they buy CDs that have their own media player on the CD.

Keep that auto-play turned off on your CD drives, everyone!

Well, this news makes me even more happy with my recent switch to the Macintosh platform. The "rootkit" will have no effect on my Powerbook.

Well, this news makes me even more happy with my recent switch to the Macintosh platform. The "rootkit" will have no effect on my Powerbook.

Not installing things without knowing what they are will also prevent stuff like this. I'd never install anything off a DVD or CD unless I know exactly what it is.

In buying music from RIAA companies like BMG/Sony, you're supporting the lawsuits that destroy low income families when grandmas, people on fixed income and low income earners get sued by companies that they have no hope to defend themselves from. Buy independant music and boycott the labels. They are what is wrong with music today anyways.

ps. Anyone who listens to Switchfoot deserves a rootkit :D

In buying music from RIAA companies like BMG/Sony, you're supporting the lawsuits that destroy low income families when grandmas, people on fixed income and low income earners get sued by companies that they have no hope to defend themselves from. Buy independant music and boycott the labels. They are what is wrong with music today anyways.

ps. Anyone who listens to Switchfoot deserves a rootkit :D
Ouch. ;)

That's a noble positon, but sometimes the music ya gotta have comes from RIAA sources.

You probably just haven't heard the independant music. In any case, if you insist on doing this, look for the actual CD logo. Those albums that are printed onto optical media but go away from the white paper standard for CD can't be marked with a CD logo. You should never buy any music ever that has any copy protection on it. If you do, then you're supporting this sort of thing. The industry will respond responsibly if people act in ways that hit their bottom line.