Sony, Rootkits and Digital Rights Management Fiasco

**RealitY** · 11-17-2005, 09:15 PM

Gotta give credit for the picture...

Now people are very aware of the Sony-BMG fiasco and the implementation of DRM. What was once largely invisible to the average customer has been shot right into the spotlight. The term “DRM” is now associated with malignancies such as ‘virus’, ‘malicious software’, ‘deception’, ‘arrogance’, ‘distrust’, and ‘trojan.’

Sounds close enough to the truth so nice to see it in the limelight.

This situation has already delayed the implementation of DRM on CDs. Sony-BMG has ceased the manufacture of CDs with XCP software, and does not expect to reinstate their DRM policy until sometime next year.

About time and maybe it should continue never again as its useless anyway.

Other record labels are also coming under increased scrutiny for their DRM products, forcing EMI to state, “We don’t use rootkits.” With so much public scorn now directed towards DRM, record labels are facing the very real possibility that DRM in its current incarnation can no longer manage to exist.

Nice knowing you and GTFO now.

Sony-BMG has managed to accomplish in 16 days what bloggers, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, writers, journalists, and niche sites have been working on for years. Sony-BMG has destroyed the music and movie industry’s arguments against P2P, and brought mainstream attention and public distaste to the DRM debate.

Thanks for assistants...

**4play** · 11-17-2005, 09:17 PM

truns out sony also where probably using stolen code to make this torjan

http://hack.fi/~muzzy/sony-drm/

infact it was open source and also the work of non other then dvd jon bit ironic really.

**peat moss** · 11-19-2005, 02:40 PM

In Canada Sony is recalling the 34 or so cd titles with XCP software .

**Virtualbody1234** · 11-20-2005, 06:03 PM

All very interesting but what happened with the antivirus tools of all those millions of users?
Why did they let Sony install the malware to begin with?
What would prevent someone else from writing something similar?

It seems to me that any such suspicious activity should cause a big flag to be waved to us users before it would be permitted to be installed on our systems.

We should be outraged at the antivirus companies too!

Check out this article: http://linuxtoday.com/security/2005111802326OPSWNT

**RealitY** · 11-21-2005, 05:24 AM

[news=http://www.slyck.com/newspics/sony2.jpg]Someone must have built a lead shield around the RIAA headquarters in Washington, DC. It's the only way to explain how RIAA president Cary Sherman doesn't see the enormously serious consumer backlash against Sony-BMG. During a university press round table discussion, Cary Sherman spoke with university journalists on various file-sharing issues, including the Sony-BMG fiasco.

There are few individuals that would consider Sony-BMG's handling of the rootkit situation a job well done. To hide the copy-protection software, the Sony-BMG rootkit employed techniques typically used by hackers or virus writers. The purpose of a rootkit is to hide files or folders, making them invisible to standard anti-spyware or anti-virus software.

Sony-BMG used this very technology in their XCP (Extended Copy Protection) CDs, created by First4Internet. Anti-DRM arguments aside, Sony-BMG found itself in so much hot water was due to several reasons.

First, Sony-BMG never mentioned the extent or scope of the XCP technology in the EULA (the 3,000 word End User Licensing Agreement.) It was never mentioned files or folders would be hidden on one's machine. In addition, according to Sysinternals, when playing a CD on Sony-BMG's proprietary media player, it "...establishes a connection with Sony’s site and sends the site an ID associated with the CD."

Sony-BMG also never mentioned the potential damage caused when removing the rootkit. When Mark Russinovich, the individual who discovered Sony-BMG's rootkit, removed the clandestine software, the CD drive no longer functioned.

On top of all this, Russinovich also pointed out Sony-BMG’s rootkit presented a gapping security hole. Any virus writer could easily create a virus identically named to Sony-BMG's rootkit and take over an untold number of infected machines.

But all of this didn't appear to phase Sony-BMG much. Initially Sony-BMG and First4Internet denied there was security problem (until the first viruses started popping up.) Even when Sony-BMG released their web-based uninstaller, which posed even a greater security risk, security vulnerabilities were still denied. You may recall the following from Sony-BMG's November 2nd statement:

"This component is not malicious and does not compromise security."

Compounding the situation a Sony-BMG president chimed in on the issue. Thomas Hesse, president of Sony-BMG's Global Digital Business, told NPR News "Most people, I think, don't even know what a Rootkit is, so why should they care about it?"

Perhaps at that moment, few people knew or cared about rootkits. But that changed in a matter of days. It was obvious within a two weeks that an enormous public backlash had erupted against Sony-BMG, one that may threaten the very existence of DRM. Seemingly downplaying the issue, Cary Sherman responded to a reports question on whether the RIAA condoned the actions of Sony-BMG.

"The problem with the SonyBMG situation is that the technology they used contained a security vulnerability of which they were unaware. They have apologized for their mistake, ceased manufacture of CDs with that technology, and pulled CDs with that technology from store shelves. Seems very responsible to me. How many times that software applications created the same problem? Lots. I wonder whether they've taken as aggressive steps as SonyBMG has when those vulnerabilities were discovered, or did they just post a patch on the Internet?”

Although Sony-BMG “shared the concerns” and “deeply regret any inconvenience” its customers may have encountered, it never specifically came out with an apology. Sony-BMG never said “We are sorry for our mistake” and never said “We apologize...”

Seems very irresponsible.

Source: http://www.slyck.com/news.php?story=1000[/news]

**twisterX** · 11-22-2005, 01:28 AM

[news=http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn

PV8O02VjhsJ:sunsite.berkeley.edu/T-Shirts/nanmv/EFF-f.jpg]The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), along with two leading national class action law firms, today filed a lawsuit against Sony BMG, demanding that the company repair the damage done by the First4Internet XCP and SunnComm MediaMax software it included on over 24 million music CDs.

EFF is pleased that Sony BMG has taken steps in acknowledging the security risks caused by the XCP CDs, including a recall of the infected discs. However, these measures still fall short of what the company needs to do to fix the problems caused to customers by XCP, and Sony BMG has failed entirely to respond to concerns about MediaMax, which affects over 20 million CDs -- ten times the number of CDs as the XCP software.

"Sony BMG is to be commended for its acknowledgment of the serious security problems caused by its XCP software, but it needs to go further to regain the public's trust," said Corynne McSherry, EFF Staff Attorney. "It is unconscionable for Sony BMG to refuse to respond to the privacy and other problems created by the over 20 million CDs containing the SunnComm software."

The suit, to be filed in Los Angeles County Superior court, alleges that the XCP and SunnComm technologies have been installed on the computers of millions of unsuspecting music customers when they used their CDs on machines running the Windows operating system. Researchers have shown that the XCP technology was designed to have many of the qualities of a "rootkit." It was written with the intent of concealing its presence and operation from the owner of the computer, and once installed, it degrades the performance of the machine, opens new security vulnerabilities, and installs updates through an Internet connection to Sony BMG's servers. The nature of a rootkit makes it extremely difficult to remove, often leaving reformatting the computer's hard drive as the only solution. When Sony BMG offered a program to uninstall the dangerous XCP software, researchers found that the installer itself opened even more security vulnerabilities in users' machines. Sony BMG has still refused to use its marketing prowess to widely publicize its recall program to reach the over 2 million XCP-infected customers, has failed to compensate users whose computers were affected and has not eliminated the outrageous terms found in its End User Licensing Agreement (EULA).

The MediaMax software installed on over 20 million CDs has different, but similarly troubling problems. It installs files on the users' computers even if they click "no" on the EULA, and it does not include a way to fully uninstall the program. The software transmits data about users to SunnComm through an Internet connection whenever purchasers listen to CDs, allowing the company to track listening habits -- even though the EULA states that the software will not be used to collect personal information and SunnComm's website says "no information is ever collected about you or your computer." If users repeatedly requested an uninstaller for the MediaMax software, they were eventually provided one, but they first had to provide more personally identifying information. Worse, security researchers recently determined that SunnComm's uninstaller creates significant security risks for users, as the XCP uninstaller did.

"Music fans shouldn't have to install potentially dangerous, privacy intrusive software on their computers just to listen to the music they've legitimately purchased," said EFF Legal Director Cindy Cohn. "Regular CDs have a proven track record -- no one has been exposed to viruses or spyware by playing a regular audio CD on a computer. Why should legitimate customers be guinea pigs for Sony BMG's experiments?"

"Consumers have a right to listen to the music they have purchased in private, without record companies spying on their listening habits with surreptitiously-installed programs," added EFF Staff Attorney Kurt Opsahl, "Between the privacy invasions and computer security issues inherent in these technologies, companies should consider whether the damage done to consumer trust and their own public image is worth its scant protection."

Both the XCP and MediaMax CDs include outrageous, anti-consumer terms in their "clickwrap" EULAs. For example, if purchasers declare personal bankruptcy, the EULA requires them to delete any digital copies on their computers or portable music players. The same is true if a customer's house gets burglarized and his CDs stolen, since the EULA allows purchasers to keep copies only so long as they retain physical possession of the original CD. EFF is demanding that Sony BMG remove these unconscionable terms from its EULAs.

The law firms of Green Welling, LLP, and Lerach, Coughlin, Stoia, Geller, Rudman and Robbins, LLP, joined EFF in the case. Sony BMG is also facing at least six other class action lawsuits nationwide and an action by the Texas Attorney General. EFF looks forward to representing the voice of digital music fans in the resolution of these disputes between Sony BMG and consumers.

Source: http://www.eff.org/news/archives/2005_11.php#004192[/news]

**Darth Sushi** · 11-22-2005, 01:41 AM

Sony is now Bologna.

**RealitY** · 11-22-2005, 02:07 AM

Its overdue for something like this and hopefully it will set a trend for what others shouldnt do in the future and not just choose to think the pubic is a retarded herd of sheep they can whatever they want to. The foolishness of this is that its set against their own legitimate customer base. The thought of it thwarting piracy in any manner is even more foolish. Ultimatly the use of this type of invasisve software is completly useless. Nice to see the EFF stepping into this as this warrants the return of their logo into my sig again...