it should be noted that Sony is still not repenting enough to be wiling to
pay to have a technician remove all unauthorized Sony software from people's
computers.  The software more than protect copyright.  It reports usage data
to Sony, which can be personally identifiable.  Currently, Sony is still
unwilling to compensate victims of its spyware antics.

Kelly

----- Original Message -----
From: "Steve Zielinski" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, December 11, 2005 12:01 AM
Subject: Sony BMG repents over CD debacle


> BBC NEWS
> Sony BMG repents over CD debacle
> By Mark Ward
> Technology correspondent, BBC News website
> Sony BMG is rethinking its anti-piracy policy following weeks of criticism
> over the
> copy protection used on CDs.
> The head of Sony BMG's global digital business, Thomas Hesse, told the BBC
> that the
> company was "re-evaluating" its current methods.
> It follows widespread condemnation of the way anti-piracy software on some
> Sony CDs
> installs itself on computers.
> The admission came as Sony faced more censure over the security failings
> of
> one of
> its copy protection programs.
> Bad publicity
> The row began in November when software developer Mark Russinovich
> discovered that
> Sony BMG's XCP anti-piracy programs used virus-like techniques to hide
> itself on
> a PC.
> This whole story has led us to look at the approach we have to take going
> forward
> Thomas Hesse, Sony BMG
> The row ended with Sony recalling all the CDs that use XCP and offering to
> swap customers'
> existing discs for ones that do not use the much-criticised software.
> Speaking to the BBC News website, Thomas Hesse, president of Sony BMG's
> global digital
> business, said all the bad publicity had made it think hard about its
> approach to
> stopping people making illegal copies.
> "The key point to remember is that copyright infringement is a huge issue
> for the
> recording industry as a whole and that's where we came from originally,"
> he
> said.
> "But this whole story has led us to look at the approach we have to take
> going forward,"
> Mr Hesse said.
> The furore about the XCP software had lead Sony BMG to "diligently
> re-evaluate" how
> it protects music on CDs.
> He said it was too early to say where Sony was in the evaluation process
> or
> what
> might result, but he said the company was taking the re-examination very
> seriously.
> Patch problems
> Sony came in for more criticism this week over SunComm's MediaMax
> anti-piracy program
> used on 32 CDs released in the US and Canada.
> The problem with the MediaMax software was revealed in a joint statement
> Sony BMG
> issued with digital rights group the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
> In that statement Sony urged users to install a patch that closed the
> security loophole
> that MediaMax opened on PCs.
> However, the discovery by independent security researchers that this patch
> suffered
> the same security problems as the original program led the EFF to withdraw
> its support.
> The loophole introduced by MediaMax and the patch could have let malicious
> hackers
> hijack the programs to gain control of a PC. The new program issued by
> Sony
> BMG on
> 8 December closes the hole in the patch.
> "It's a fairly common issue often found in PC games," said Robert Horton,
> a
> security
> expert from NGS Software brought in by Sony to vet its latest patch.
> "Its fairly common and the fix is easy to provide through a software
> update."
> He said it was unlikely that any attacker would have been able to exploit
> the bugs
> in MediaMax and its patch.
> "Even if the issue is only a slight one, at Sony BMG we are very clear
> that
> any software
> security issues are taken with the utmost seriousness," said Mr Hesse.
> Story from BBC NEWS:
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/technology/4514678.stm
> Published: 2005/12/09 16:59:28 GMT
> © BBC MMV
>
>
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>


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