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HOT READ, Sony Unit to Distribute Software Patch (for hidden files)
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AfterDawn Addict
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2. November 2005 @ 14:42 _ Link to this message    Send private message to this user   
Sony Unit to Distribute Software Patch
AP - 28 minutes ago
SAN JOSE, Calif. - After a chorus of criticism, Sony Corp.'s music division said Wednesday it is distributing a free software patch to reveal hidden files that automatically installed to hard drives when some of its music CDs were played on personal computers.
article all so posted here
http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/252064


Sony Unit to Distribute Software Patch



By MATTHEW FORDAHL, AP Technology Writer 19 minutes ago

SAN JOSE, Calif. - After a chorus of criticism, Sony Corp (NYSE:SNE - news).'s music division said Wednesday it is distributing a free software patch to reveal hidden files that automatically installed to hard drives when some of its music CDs were played on personal computers.


The offending technology was designed to thwart music piracy.

Sony BMG Music Entertainment and its partner, UK-based First 4 Internet, said they decided to offer the patch as a precaution, not because of any security vulnerability, which some critics had alleged.

"What we decided to do is take extra precautionary steps to allay any fears," said Mathew Gilliat-Smith, First 4 Internet's CEO. "There should be no concern here."

The controversy started Monday after Windows expert Mark Russinovich posted a Web log report on how he found hidden files on his PC after playing a Van Zant CD. He also said it disabled his CD drive after he tried to manually remove it.

Russinovich made the discovery while running a program he had written for uncovering file-cloaking "RootKits." In this case, the Sony program hid the antipiracy software from view. Similar technology also has been used by virus and worm writers to conceal their code.

A firestorm quickly erupted over what appeared to be an attempt by the music company to retain control over its intellectual property by secretly installing hidden software on the PCs of unsuspecting customers.

Making matters worse, Sony did not disclose exactly what it was doing in its license agreement, Russinovich said. It only mentions that proprietary software to enable copy protection would be installed. The software affects only PCs running the Windows operating system.

"The (license) makes no mention that it's going to install something that's going to be hidden from view, that will constantly consume CPU resources even if I'm not listening to music and it will have no uninstall capability," he said.

Because the technology looks for a specific prefix in the filename, it also could be used by malware authors to mask their programs, Russinovich said. There's also the question of how a PC user is supposed to maintain a system that runs hidden programs.

"If you've got software on your computer that you can't see, there's no way for you to manage it from a security point of view," he said. "You don't know if you need updates for it. You don't know if you should uninstall it because you don't know it's even there."

The copy protection technology, which limits how many times a CD can be copied, was included on about 20 titles, including discs from The Bad Plus and Vivian Green, among others.

Gilliat-Smith and Sony BMG spokesman John McKay said the technology had been on the market for about eight months and there had been no major complaints prior to Russinovich's blog post. Still, a newer, similar technology was in the process of rolling out before the latest controversy erupted.

The patches that reveal the hidden files are being made available to antivirus companies as well as customers who visit the Sony BMG site. They do not remove the copy protection software, however.

McKay said customers can download a program to safely uninstall all the software by visiting the Sony BMG Web site at http://cp.sonybmg.com.

The controversy highlights the need for rules as to what content providers can and can't install on PCs to protect their property, said Russinovich, who is co-founder and chief software architect at Winternals Software, which specializes in advanced systems software for Microsoft Windows.

"We need to get some formality about what's legal, what's ethical and what's fair ? and what level of disclosure there needs to be," he said. "It's fine for Sony to say we're not going to do that now. What kind of guarantee do we have they're not going to do it at a future date or that other companies are not going to do this?"

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051103/ap_on_hi_te/sony_copy_protection;_
ylt=A86.I25hWGlD8ncAMR8jtBAF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--

SOFTWARE UPDATES/ PLUG-INS
http://cp.sonybmg.com./xcp/english/updates.html

November 2, 2005 - This Service Pack removes the cloaking technology component that has been recently discussed in a number of articles published regarding the XCP Technology used on SONY BMG content protected CDs. This component is not malicious and does not compromise security. However to alleviate any concerns that users may have about the program posing potential security vulnerabilities, this update has been released to enable users to remove this component from their computers.

http://updates.xcp-aurora.com/
AfterDawn Addict
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2. November 2005 @ 17:11 _ Link to this message    Send private message to this user   
Man... wtf is Sony trying to do? Are they trying to take over the world? Perhaps, we should call them "the music terrorist of 2005" -- I mean, c'mon... it is obvious that Sony is a b!tch and they're trying to destroy our personal computer for playing their freaken CDs. For god sake, if they're talking about violations and piracy, they're the one that has violated the law and they're the real criminals.

Evidently, they put their freaken "rootkit" or whatever files onto the CD that I (we) bought and once we played it on our computer, then it installs their freaken shit on our system without my (our) consent, and it will eventually terminate our computer if we try to "delete or uninstall" their shit/files. Sony's crying out loud when people's buying their music CDs then recopying or rebacking up them per scratches protections and home use, and Sony called it a piracy? Wtf...?? What part of don't Sony understand that once I bought your shit, it is mine now?

Man... I hope Sony will be sued by tons of people or somebody soon.



WARNING: Do not "update/upgrade" your SAMSUNG BD-D5XXX series (Bluray Player), or else you cant enjoy any of your movie files.
How 2 downgrade Samsung BD-D5XXX Series Bluray player http://forum.samygo.tv/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=4244

This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 2. November 2005 @ 17:12

Member
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2. November 2005 @ 17:41 _ Link to this message    Send private message to this user   
I totaly agree with alkohol, what a load of crap! I've just lots all respect for Sony, looks like I'll have to switch CD-R/DVD-R Brands now!



"ARccOS? is the first and only available digital and dynamic DVD-Video copy control which effectively prevents unauthorized DVD copying on PC. ?Our customers are pleased to finally have found a copy control solution for DVD-Video that protects their content successfully."
HAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!!!
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