The SONY CD Root Kit System

It allows files to be invisible on your computer's file system and also allows programs to be invisible when running. Microsoft will bring out a fix which will make your SONY/BMG protected disks unplayable on your computer. I understand the Norah Jones CD even trashes your hard disk if you try to copy it (seen a laptop that died this way).

No not me, but you could ask me mate who copped one in the neck from the specially sharpened edge ones we use in CD frisbee wars...

But seriously, it would appear that Sony have a public relations disaster on their hands and have pulled the DRM rootkit

And now this from their EULA

'If your house gets burgled, you have to delete all your music from your laptop when you get home. ... Sony-BMG can install and use backdoors in the copy protection software or media player to "enforce their rights" against you, at any time, without notice.'...

My opinion is that I hope public pressure will get rid of all this DRM, "you have stolen our music, Go to Jail, Do not Pass Go", bullshit.

The music / movie pigopolists cried foul with cassette tapes and videos, and the solution to that was we all pay a small ? fee every time we buy a blank one.

Why can't they do the same with PCs, mp3 players, cd / dvd burners and the like... and piss off all this DRM bullshit.

Baz

It's more than that now.

There are a groups of viruses out already that use the rootkit to hide their presence and Sony have at least one court case in California to defend.

The general "hoping" appears to be that a cashed up company will go after them for damage they let happen to their system by installing undisclosed software - an illegal act in California. .

I just did a job removing hack.tool.root.kit from 4 machines in a financial firm, is this related to sony somehow? What exactly is it sony are doing? Installing software from their music CDs?

Michael

after

undisclosed

financial

Yes.

Plenty of discussion springing up about it all, here's some places to start:

- Chock

Which Norah Jones CD

I have both of her albums and was able to copy it pretty much as I wanted..

of months. And I purchased my Norah Jones CD a long time before that.

For the rootkit to be installed you need to have autorun enabled.

If you don't, or held the shift key while inserting the CD then the DRM measures weren't installed and there's no problem copying.

This kind of DRM is only good for screwing legitimate users.

Dave

Just more buggy and badly thought out software.

Little chance of that happening to me, I don't buy CD, you don't get problems like these from vinyls.

Hmmm... thats like being burgled twice in one hit, only one of the burgulars is more brazen about it.

It was well over a year ago and was purchased in the Northern Territory: imported CD maybe?.

Maybe the PC just failed at that time.

Sounds like they are beginning to back down:

The description of the problem was that a dialog box opened saying something along the lines of "CD copy protection activated" and then the laptop reset and could not be booted as the FAT tables were corrupted.

Hell if Sony's root kit can do that could not they be liable for computer damage?

This is talked about in this thread. They are being sued.

there is already 1 virus/nasty taking advantage of the rootkit, all u need to do is put $sys$ in the filename of a program and it's hidden from windows, virus scanners, etc, however most virus scanners have flagged the sony rootkit (xcp, developed by first 4 internet) as a virus and i think they have removal tools. nasty piece of software, World of Warcraft's(online game) Warden anti cheating system fails to see programs that have been named with $sys$ allowing ppl to cheat.

a few states in usa have started legal proceedings against sony bmg, and reading the eula is quite interesting

The thing I'm interested to know, is the hack.tool.root.kit virus anything to do with this or just share a similar name. How can I find out which virus have taken advantage of sony's software?

Michael

Sony have removed the protetection software from production...............

Mitch.....