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Boycott Sony - Join in as this might cause a huge problem to all of us!

adlep

adlep

Diamond Member
Hi!
Slashdot and Sysinternals are reporting that Sony Corporation is installing rootkits on our Windows based PCs. Such a practice might cause all of us a lot of problems in the future. I have decided to create a short email to my friends and clients informing them about the problem. If you think that I need some corrections, let me know and forward that info to anybody you know as well...
This is a very dangerous practice...
Here is the email:

Subject: Sony Corporation is installing undetectable software on your computer

Dear Friends,

Be very careful. Sony Corporation is installing undetectable software on your computer. Please, do not buy any music CDs from the label "Sony BMG Music Entertainment" or you are risking potentially damaging your computer. The copy protection software which comes with purchased CDs is really a Trojan root-kit, very difficult to detect and uninstall.

I have included the following links to credible sources to describe the changes made to computers (illegally), as well as the threat it exposes your computer to from other internet users, such as identity theft, please follow these link to learn more from respectable sources:

This link briefly summarizes the danger.
http://slashdot.org/~xtracto/journal/121088


Second link offers more technical assesment of the threat from a well respected and independent Windows Expert - Mr. Mark Russinovich:

http://www.sysinternals.com/Blog/



Why is this important?

Sony Corporation is a huge corporation and their practice violates our right to privacy and our right to know what exactly is being installed on our computers. Sony is also deceiving the public by denying any wrongdoing on their part.

Boycott Sony!

Please forward this message to your friends.
Click to expand...
 
Originally posted by: mzkhadir
stop spamming. People have brains.
Click to expand...

No, it took me few days to actually realize the seriousness of this problem...
How come I am spamming?
People have brains?
Yeah, right...
:Q

Edit: Thanks a lot for a "helpfull" feedback. :|
 
Originally posted by: Need4Speed
this is why i download all my music
Click to expand...


Exactly, this is unbelivable, they are creating more problems for themselves by doing something like that...
 
Originally posted by: mzkhadir
stop spamming. People have brains.
Click to expand...

I say spam away on something like this because people DON'T have brains. Maybe most of the people on this board do, but most people don't. Also most people don't go reading slashdot or even wonder if Sony is putting spyware on their computer. At least this forward would be somewhat useful.
 
Originally posted by: Darkstar757
this is one instance where I agree spam would be good. Most people have no ides what a root kit is.
Click to expand...


And that is why the general public needs to send a very strong message on this:
We DO NOT want any other company to even attempt doing this on a mass scale again...
Please people, read the Mark's blog few times. He is an absolute expert on Windows and it took him a LOT of time to figure this out.
Can you imagine more trojans like that from more companies?
What kind of a security loop it will create?
 
i anxiously await when microsoft will add this sony rootkit to their "malicious spyware removal" package.
 
Originally posted by: mzkhadir
People have brains.
Click to expand...

:laugh:

Good one, Seinfeld 🙂

Way ahead of you OP, I haven't bought any of their junk for almost 20 years now.
 
Originally posted by: ShadowBlade
what is a rootkit?
Click to expand...

Wikipedia Definition.

Excerpt:

Common uses of rootkits

A rootkit is often used to hide utilities used to abuse a compromised system. These often include so called "backdoors" to help the attacker subsequently access the system more easily. For example, the rootkit may hide an application that spawns a shell when the attacker connects to a particular network port on the system. Kernel rootkits may include similar functionality. A backdoor may also allow processes started by a non-privileged user to execute functions normally reserved for the superuser. All sorts of other tools useful for abuse can be hidden using rootkits. This includes tools for further attacks against computer systems the compromised system communicates with such as sniffers and keyloggers. A common abuse is to use a compromised computer as a staging ground for further abuse. This is often done to make the abuse appear to originate from the compromised system or network instead of the attacker. Tools for this can include (D)DoS tools and tools to relay chat sessions, (spam)E-mail or attacks.

Recently, some spyware and even commercial CD DRM software (Sony's, for example) have started using rootkit technology to hide themselves from the anti-spyware software and make uninstallation difficult.
Click to expand...

Plainly, Sony is peddling malware on its CD's. Can't wait to see what they do to us with BluRay!

Jason
 
To clarify, the first link in the message does an excellent job summarizing the problem.
While Mark's blog goes deep down into Win Internals to explain the problem...
Once again, this is more about allowing Sony to set the precedence than anything else...
 
Since you're sending it via email,
Include links to CREDIBLE sources.

Don't forget a statement such as
"So you dismiss this email as 'yet another spam mail' about some urban legend, I have included the following links to credible sources to describe the changes made to computers (illegally), as well as the threat it exposes your computer to from other internet users, such as identity theft."
 
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Since you're sending it via email,
Include links to CREDIBLE sources.
Click to expand...

I already did.
1st one is a link to Slashdot blogger.
2nd one is to an absolute Windows master troubleshooter. If it comes from him, it is credible IMO..
Did you follow my links?

I have included the following links to credible sources to describe the changes made to computers (illegally), as well as the threat it exposes your computer to from other internet users, such as identity theft."
Click to expand...
Thank you very much, this is a good idea. I am going to incorporate that in the email...
 
Originally posted by: Need4Speed
this is why i download all my music
Click to expand...

QFT. Why pay for music when you know its going to put a virus on your computer, when you can download it for free and there only be a chance of it having a virus.

Edit: not a virus, but a root kit, making your computer open to attacks.
 
Sony renegged, gave a method to "uncloak" the offending software, and has already said that it was no longer going to use these type of systems. What else do you want?
 
Originally posted by: Jzero
Sony renegged, gave a method to "uncloak" the offending software, and has already said that it was no longer going to use these type of systems. What else do you want?
Click to expand...

 
Originally posted by: mugs
Originally posted by: Jzero
Sony renegged, gave a method to "uncloak" the offending software, and has already said that it was no longer going to use these type of systems. What else do you want?
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

Follow my second link for the answer.
The "uninstaller" does not work the way it should!
Fool me once Sony...:|
The uninstall process Sony has put in place is on par with mainstream spyware and adware and is the topic of this blog post.
Click to expand...
READ PLEASE.
The more you dig into Mark's blog the more you realize that the Sony's behavior is a big crock of shi*. This time, it has happened that they decided to fuc* with the wrong person - person more than qualified to detect such an intrusion, but what about the rest of us?
I know my way around computers (more or less), but I do not want to go through what Mark had to go through in order to remove the parasite...
 
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