Is Sony Breaking the Law?

[Signe]

This is kind of an interesting read if you are inclined to read this sort of thing.  I'm still reading it and haven't followed all the links and read them yet, however.   

[HaemishM]

That's some fucked up shit.

[Shockeye]

Is there a EULA or anything that comes up when you put in the CD and try to play it or make a copy of it? I couldn't tell if there was from the linked site.

[Cheddar]

There is an EULA, but it does not address the installation of the type of software.  Its addressed in the comments somewhere.

[Murgos]

Lame, thats some sloppy crap on there.  The best way they could come up with to determine if thier music was being copied was to look and see if any running program had one of thier special music files open every few seconds?  Fugly.

[Signe]

It is fugly and it's clumsy and rather stupid... but is it illegal?

[Pococurante]

As much so as WoW's spyware.

[Shockeye]

As much so as WoW's spyware.

Ahh, I don't think so. WoW's "spyware" is covered in their EULA, it seems.

[Pococurante]

Which was my point - I'm sure buried deep somewhere in the packaging is something that Sony inserted as well.  WoW retrofits their EULA while always keeping the same date on it, making it debatable its customers really know there has been a change.

[Cheddar]

EULA was modified.

http://www.sysinternals.com/blog/2005/10/sony-rootkits-and-digital-rights.html#113081176281037052

[Signe]

Doesn't stuff like this just make you want to give someone such a big pinch?

[Samwise]

It makes me feel very justified in my policy of never accepting the installation of any software that comes as part of a music CD or video DVD.

[Ironwood]

Unless it's that one where Shakira is paddling in the mud.

[HaemishM]

Doesn't stuff like this just make you want to give someone such a big pinch?

More like a donkey punch and a Cleveland steamer.

[Signe]

Ha!  You've never been on the tushie end of my pinch!

[Shockeye]

Here's a funny little story of Sony helping WoW cheaters.

[Lemming]

The irony!  It's entertaining to watch these companies give ideas and tools to hackers and pirates as they try to keep an eye on exactly what we do with their product on our computers.  I'm no supporter of hackers, but this is exactly what these companies get for being so invasive.

[Signe]

World of Warcraft hackers using Sony BMG rootkit
Published: 2005-11-03

Click here for Core Impact!

Want to cheat in your online game and not get caught? Just buy a Sony BMG copy protected CD.

World of Warcraft hackers have confirmed that the hiding capabilities of Sony BMG's content protection software can make tools made for cheating in the online world impossible to detect. The software--deemed a "rootkit" by many security experts--is shipped with tens of thousands of the record company's music titles.

Blizzard Entertainment, the maker of World of Warcraft, has created a controversial program that detects cheaters by scanning the processes that are running at the time the game is played. Called the Warden, the anti-cheating program cannot detect any files that are hidden with Sony BMG's content protection, which only requires that the hacker add the prefix "$sys$" to file names.

Despite making a patch available on Wednesday to consumers to amend its copy protection software's behavior, Sony BMG and First 4 Internet, the maker of the content protection technology, have both disputed claims that their system could harm the security of a Windows system. Yet, other software makers that rely on the integrity of the operating system are finding that hidden code makes security impossible.

http://www.securityfocus.com/brief/34
(I don't really reccommend this site for anything useful, actually)

[Pococurante]

Oh sweet sweet irony... and the arms race continues.

[Evangolis]

Since the original article was published, Sony has reacted by first updating their EULA (which shouldn't matter for all the prior releases, IMO), and by providing a tool to reveal the hidden files and processes, as well as removal tools, although you have to register to get the tool.

Not that it matters, I'm sure that there is already software out there to break this scheme, since the scheme itself was protected by its obscurity, which, as we see once again, is no protection at all.

On the bright side, know I know that I have to scan my system for rootkits.  Thank goodness for tech geeks.

[Kairos]

The best part is that apparently their copy protection can be defeated by holding the shift key down while you insert the disc.

[AOFanboi]

The best part is that apparently their copy protection can be defeated by holding the shift key down while you insert the disc.

That goes for all music copy-protection schemes that rely on installing shit on your PC. That, or turning off the CD-ROM autostart "feature".

[Righ]

Summary piece by coherent journo:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4406178.stm

[HaemishM]

Well, motherfucker.

So I went out this weekend to the used CD store and bought a CD, the Velvet Revolver album. And after reading that BBC article, I looked on the case, seeing it was a BMG CD. Placing the CD into my drive at work, I get the nasty little popup telling me to install their fucking music player software. I give it a firm "No," since I already have at least two other pieces of music player software on my machine, I don't need another, thank you very fucking much. It ejects the CD from the drive. Fuckers. So then I go into Windows Media Player (after holding down the Shift key to keep the CD from trying to install their shitware) and just add the files from my CD into my media library. It's my goddamn CD, I bought it.

That works well until I try to play them. Thank you very fucking much, Microsoft, which now tells me for each one of the songs, that I have to go to the company's web site in order to get a license to play the songs. You know, the songs on the CD that I fucking bought with my own fucking money. Those songs. Not wanting to do so, since my purchase of the CD IS MY GODDAMN LICENSE TO PLAY THE SONGS ON MY OWN GODDAMN HARDWARE, I told it "No" firmly.

And it doesn't play the songs. At all. Cocksmokers.

It's my fucking CD. I'm not copying it for all in the world to download, I just want to listen to it on my computer at work or home. I don't need your fucking spyware rootkit media player, I have a media player of choice. I'm tempted to take the motherfucking CD back to the store and tell him why I'm returning it. There is no good goddam reason for that kind of shit. IT'S MY FUCKING CD, AND I HAVE THE LICENSE TO USE IT.

Pussyweasels.

[Cheddar]

Anger

Not installing their protection software is supporting terrorism.  You are a patriot, are you not?

[HaemishM]

I am a patriot missle of hate at the misuse of copyright law.

[Roac]

<music companies are being assholes>

Well... stop buying their product.  Every purchase is a vote of confidence for every policy they have.  Quit it.

[HaemishM]

Note that I bought a USED CD. Which means I'm not paying the company, someone else did that. I haven't bought a new CD in over a year because of stupid shit like this.

[Roac]

Note that I bought a USED CD.

From a store that sells new CDs?

[HaemishM]

No, from a store that sells used CD's. And used DVD's. Hence the name "used CD store" that I put in the original post.

Essentially, some other idiot bought BMG's product and got rid of it. I bought it from a middleman, not realizing that in order to fully use the product, I would have to bend over and spread my cheeks for my new daddy.

[MisterNoisy]

Haem:

If the actual music files on the disc are visible to Windows Explorer, just rip them to MP3 using another application, like DMC or FreeRip.

Some copy-protected discs will also render the files invisible to Windows, but I've found that Easy CD Creator 5 (and likely other CD burining apps) can still read the files if you select the drive the CD is in as your source, and will allow you to copy them as .wav files to your HDD.  At that point you can then convert 'em to MP3 (and then play them using WMP) without any (additional) hassle.  I'm pretty sure that with DMC, that may not be necessary (just turn off Table of Contents detection)

[Sky]

Some good idears, Mr N. I should get a Sony disc and check it on my OSX Mac. Failing that, rip it on a Unix box. There are still ways. I wish game devs would support OSX so I could ditch goddamned windows.

[Furiously]

Some good idears, Mr N. I should get a Sony disc and check it on my OSX Mac. Failing that, rip it on a Unix box. There are still ways. I wish game devs would support OSX so I could ditch goddamned windows.

No you don't because then you would get multi-os rootkits and would have the same problem with OS X. I like the mac having the marketshare it has, and not having to worry about viruses or worms or this kind of crap designed for windows.

[Merusk]

Velvet Revolver CD Hate

Yeah, the original wrap has a big warning sticker that says "This cd contains copy protection software" Doesn't do you any good since you bought a used CD.   I was able to rip the CD by using Music Match Jukebox to rip the files straight to MP3 with my laptop at home, so what Mr. Noisy suggests will work for you.

[Signe]

Some good idears, Mr N. I should get a Sony disc and check it on my OSX Mac. Failing that, rip it on a Unix box. There are still ways. I wish game devs would support OSX so I could ditch goddamned windows.

No you don't because then you would get multi-os rootkits and would have the same problem with OS X. I like the mac having the marketshare it has, and not having to worry about viruses or worms or this kind of crap designed for windows.

When Apple and Intel become butt buddies, though, maybe we'll get some of the cool viruses, too.  Maybe we can even get Sony's popular new rootkit!  I only ever use a PC because I hate people having stuff I can't have. 

(edited to add the word "get" between "even" and "Sony")