Sony BMG's Other Copy Protection Tech Installs Even If You Tell It Not To
from the that-seems-illegal dept
Yes, the never ending saga of Sony BMG and their copy protection technologies continues. This time, it's more about Sony BMG's other copy protection system, MediaMax, from SunnComm. As you may recall, Sony has only recalled CDs using the XCP copy protection technology from First4Internet. Once again, we have Alex Halderman to thank for bringing this to light. Halderman noted that MediaMax has many spyware like qualities and also discovered the security hole in SunnComm's uninstaller. However, the latest finding is perhaps more problematic. The way MediaMax works is, if you have autorun enabled on your Windows PC and insert a MediaMax-enabled CD, it pops up an end user license agreement (EULA), not really telling you what it's doing. If you realize that you don't want this installed on your computer and hit "no," it's already installed some amount of code that isn't easily removed. However, the latest finding is that inserting another (or the same) CD with MediaMax on it (even if you hit no to the EULA again) will install even more code that will run on your machine even though you specifically told it not to. As Halderman points out, that certainly seems like it's breaking some sort of law. Putting up an agreement that someone declines should mean that no software is installed.
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No Subject Given
everyone together now: Disable AutoRun!
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Re: No Subject Given
There's a group policy for that, even ensures it stays off. :)
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not the point
The computer-savy among us aren't likely to be buying Sony BMG cd's in the first place.
Ask your average computer user who picked up a Dell or a PC from a warehouse store how to turn off autorun. Yup - that's right - you'll get a glazed expression.
But even that isn't really the point. You're supposed to be taking protective measures to protect you from hackers - not from CDs you PAID GOOD MONEY FOR.
I hope Sony get's REALLY burned on this.
-stormin
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Just like Quicktime, Real, Netscape, ....
Even if you check "no", they still install a lot of crap that will start up with your machine as background processes, plus other software like i-tunes that you did not agree to install.
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Things keep getting worse
like mentioned before disable auto run for cd's, as far as quick time real and netscape there are alternative vursions of each, anyway i hope Sony burns.
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Re: not the point
Yeah, kinda ironic that most people that are downloading these CDs for free(illegally) don't have to worry about the viruses and code running from the original store bought cd. Almost makes me wanna switch over. Hint. Hint. lol... yeah its stupid how far theyve gone with this. Just say sorry, we're stupid, heres a freakin good uninstaller, nothing left behind.... and give money back... and pay for virus infected systems...
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Re: Disabling Autorun
To all those who are advocating disabling Autorun, did you think what might happen to your CD/DVD bruner software? Disabling Autorun can disable your burner. The only solution: DO NOT BUY SONY BMG CDs. Period. Whether the package says it's copy protected or not. I mean, can we actually trust anything they say anymore?
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Re: Disabling Autorun
"Disabling Autorun can disable your burner."
Dumbass.
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No Subject Given
Surely if you decline to agree to the agreement, no contract is entered into and by installing the software, Sony has a hard case in front of them. I would love to see this one tested.
Anyone able to copy the user agreement?
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Re: Disabling Autorun
Disabling autorun = good.
"Disabling Autorun can disable your burner"
Oh, do tell how! I'm sure Sony BMG will be
delighted to know there's no two word solution
that can be used to prevent their righteous
DRM software from installing!
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How to disable Autorun?
Start RegEdit (from the Start menu, choose Run... Type "regedit" and hit return).
On the left side of the Registry editor, navigate to:
My Computer
-> HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
--> SYSTEM
---> CurrentControlSet
----> Services
-----> Cdrom
Select the Cdrom entry by clicking on it.
On the right side of the Registry Editor, doubleclick on the key "AutoRun". A popup appears. In the field labeled "Value", enter 0 (zero). Close the dialog by clicking OK.
Close the Registry Editor.
AutoRun is now disabled.
Cheers, Hedwig
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Disagree
OK guys, Sony is evil and everyone should disable Windows auto-run.
But, when you install a CD in your PC, it's a reasonable assumption that you want to "run" the contents. If running requires installing a small amount of software, then maybe no other permission is required to install this small amount.
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Re: Disagree
I want nobody to make assumptions on what I intend to do. And definitely not if they change the way I have always done things.
First of all, I don't 'install' the CD in my PC, I 'insert' it in the same way as I have inserted diskettes, zip-drives, USB-sticks etc. Second, my intention is not to 'run' the content, but to have access to it. There's a difference: I determine which program I will use to access the data on the CD.
And since I have this program on my PC that can access AUDIO CD content (see the label on the box), I want to use that one, not some bundled coding that I cannot trust. Remember that I have bought an AUDIO CD, not a "music player program".
So if you think that inserting a CD in your drive is the same as giving permission to install whatever is on the CD, don't come complaining when you "run" into an internet site that uses the same logic to install an "upgrade" of your browser to better view the spam (or other) content of that site without asking your permission...
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Re: Disagree
I always wonder about people who make these types of comments and come to the conclusion that they fall into one of three types.
1. They are just plain stupid.
2. They are employees of the company practicing these illegal methods.
3. They are trolls.
Personally I'd go with options 1 and 3.
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no opnion, just a quick question
I can't figure out how to turn the auto-run off of this damn quick time player. It automatically installs with my iTunes, I don't rly mind it being there because I don't use it for anything. but I hate the auto-run feature, because I can't figure out how to turn this one off...
anyone help?
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