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Thread ID: 63224 2005-11-02 07:36:00 Sony CD's and rootkits KatiMike (242) Press F1
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401381 2005-11-02 07:36:00 Read the IDG newsletter today - so Sony is putting rootkits on some audio CD's in an attempt to combat piracy - so you buy your CD , play it on your computer and some mal-ware gets installed that's very hard to find , and difficult to remove . For me this means I won't be buying any more Sony et al CD's as I play quite a lot of music on my PC . Geez do they realise moves such as this will only encourage piracy ? If I can't trust my legally purchased CD to not to infest my PC with cr*p , why would I not download content from the web?

Any thoughts ???
KatiMike (242)
401382 2005-11-02 07:41:00 i heard they might be introducing a tax on media like cdr, dvd etc Prescott (11)
401383 2005-11-02 07:48:00 www.sysinternals.com robsonde (120)
401384 2005-11-02 07:52:00 1. They need their asses kicked and their fingers broken for this carry on.Removal of their code disables your CD drive unless done by their instructions which are only available on request.

2.Never ever ever install anything off an Audio CD, simply rip the content to HD and play from there. And in a cunning move distribute them via your favourite p2p app, burn off a dozen copies for freinds, relitives and random people in the street.And then sell the cd for $4.
Metla (12)
401385 2005-11-04 00:04:00 If you want some more opinions look at


www.pcqanda.com
FrankS (257)
401386 2005-11-04 00:08:00 According to BBC News ( . bbc . co . uk/2/hi/technology/4400148 . stm" target="_blank">news . bbc . co . uk) it can be removed quite easily and is not used anymore .


Mr Gilliat-Smith said Mr Russinovich had problems removing XCP because he tried to do it manually something that was not a "recommended action" . Instead, said Mr Gilliat-Smith, he should have contacted Sony BMG which gives consumers advice about how to remove the software .

Getting the software removed involves filling in a form on the Sony website, visiting a unique URL and agreeing to have another program downloaded on to a user's PC that then does the uninstallation .

He added that First 4 Internet had had no complaints about XCP since it started being used eight months ago . He also added that the latest generation of XCP no longer used cloaked files to do its job .

"We've moved away from using that sort of methodology," he said .
KiwiTT_NZ (233)
401387 2005-11-04 00:56:00 1. They don't tell you outright that playing the cd will install software on your comp... only that it is 'copy protected'. Deceptive at best.

2. I wouldn't call it easy to remove the rootkit, especially as you have to download and install another program to uninstall it. Annoying at least.

I had a similar situation a few months ago when I purchased a well know (and expensive) comp program on CD... installed it all ok, and yes read all the EUL before clicking OK.

A few days later I kept getting this pop up that said 'Install shield needs to check for updates'. I found that it was trying to check for updates to the program I'd installed. Worse that there was no way to disable the update message, even worse that the install shield update manager prog had no unistaller and more annoying that I had to ferret around on their site to find a well hidden program to uninstall the crap. I told both them and the program maker what I thought.

The arrogance of these people defies me, both Sony and others- when you've paid good money for a product that they want you to buy you don't want to be dicked around by underhanded practices.
Shortcircuit (1666)
401388 2005-11-04 01:32:00 According to BBC News ( . bbc . co . uk/2/hi/technology/4400148 . stm" target="_blank">news . bbc . co . uk) it can be removed quite easily and is not used anymore .
Originally Posted by BBCNews
Mr Gilliat-Smith said Mr Russinovich had problems removing XCP because he tried to do it manually Instead, he should have contacted Sony BMG which gives consumers advice about how to remove the software .

Getting the software removed involves filling in a form on the Sony website, visiting a unique URL and agreeing to have another program downloaded on to a user's PC that then does the uninstallation .

He added that First 4 Internet had had no complaints about XCP since it started being used eight months ago .

Rubbish .
Rootkits are not some simple easy to remove thing like a piece of spyware . First he had to find it was there as it hides itself and integrates itself into the system at a low level .
Secondly AFTER the **** hit the fan Sony offered the removal tool . Not before . And I find that suspicious in itself - agree to install another of their programs? Right .
As for having no complaints - how many people are even aware of spyware and viruses, never mind stealth stuff like rootkits?
Lucky he was so skilled and let the rest of us know about it .
And go read up some more about it - under US law Sony is guilty of breaking one of them - lets see them wriggle out of that . . .
pctek (84)
401389 2005-11-04 01:49:00 under US law Sony is guilty of breaking one of them - lets see them wriggle out of that...
I'll celebrate only AFTER someone sues Sony and wins. (Which would probably never happen :mad: )
bob_doe_nz (92)
401390 2005-11-04 11:22:00 i heard they might be introducing a tax on media like cdr, dvd etc

They are already taxed. Ever heard of GST? :D
Big John (551)
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