Sony abandons copy-control CDs
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SONY&#39;S music unit is abandoning its CDs that use built-in technology that limits copying them, after pushing the program for two years.
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Thumbs down Sony is prepping an update to remove rootkit-like technology that shipped with a range of USB storage devices featuring fingerprint authentication.â¦
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(InfoWorld) - A line of USB drives sold by Sony installs files in a hidden folder that can be accessed and used by hackers, a Finnish security company charged Monday, raising the specter of a replay of the fiasco that hit Sony's music arm two years ago when researchers discovered that its copy protection software used rootkit-like technologies. According to F-Secure, the fingerprint-reader software included with the Sony MicroVault USM-F line of flash drives installs a driver that hides in a hidden directory under "c:\\windows". That directory and the files within it are not visible through Windows' usual APIs, said F-Secure researcher Mika Tolvanen in a posting to the company's blog Monday. "[But] if you know the name of the directory, it is possible to enter the hidden directory using [the] Command Prompt, and it is possible to create new hidden files," said Tolvanen. "There are also ways to run files from this directory." All of this -- and the fact that the directory goes unspotted by some antivirus scanners -- is similar to the Sony BMG rootkit case in late 2005. Then, researchers spotted rootkit-like cloaking technologies used by the copy-protection software Sony BMG Music Entertainment installed on PCs when customers played the label's audio CDs. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) alleged that Sony had violated federal law and settled with the company earlier this year. Before that, Sony paid out nearly $6 million to settle cases with U.S. states. "This isn't the same code, recycled," said Mikko Hypponen, F-Secure's chief research officer, in an interview Monday. "Sony doesn't do any of its own development in this area; it looks like a Chinese company did it. But the similarities lie in the fact that like the Sony BMG rootkit, this software uses a hidden folder and hides files in it." More important, he said, is another trait shared by both. "This can be used to hide malware," Hypponen charged. By mid-November 2005, less than two weeks after the first reports that the Sony BMG copy protection software used rootkit-style technologies, Trojan horses using the Sony code to hide from security software popped up in the wild. Hypponen is convinced the same thing can happen here. "This will be trivial to use," he said. Both Hypponen and Tolvanen pointed out that the MicroVault software is cloaking the folder for good reason: To protect the fingerprint reader's authentication files from being tampered with or circumvented. The issue, said Hypponen, is that Sony's left the door ajar. "What's not justified is that others can use this folder," he said. "If Sony was only hiding its own files, no one would object." F-Secure first notified Sony "about a month ago" that its rootkit-sniffing software, BlackLight, had reported hidden files on a system with the MicroVault software. "We never got a reply," said Hypponen. Sony did not respond to a Computerworld request for comment Monday.
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Sony Corp. is removing a chip from the European version of its new PlayStation 3 (PS3) game console, a move that cuts costs but means users cannot play some of their old games.
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One-off opportunity, says cheeky vendor Sony's BWU-100A Blu-ray Disc burner will this month gain the ability to play pre-recorded BD discs, the consumer electronics giant has revealed. The fix will come courtesy of an update to the copy of CyberLink PowerDVD bundled with the internal drive.â¦
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Sony BMG Music Entertainment, the world's second largest music company, will this month become the last of the big four majors to drop copy protection software on music downloads, also known as digital rights management (DRM).
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CES 2005 Better format because... Sony says so?
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Sony's three-year effort to beat Apple's iTunes Music Store is over.
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Sony has finally posted a patch for the CyberLink PowerDVD playback software it bundles with its internal Blu-ray Disc burner, the BWU-100A, to allow the drive to play pre-recorded BD media. Sony announced the drive in Europe in September. A month later it promised a BD playback update.â¦
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Japan's Toshiba Corp (6502.T) said on  Tuesday it would stop promoting its HD DVD format for the  next-generation DVD after losing the support of key studios and  retailers to the Blu-ray technology backed by Sony Corp  (6758.T).
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Sony stops making copy-protected CDs, saying music fans have heeded its anti-piracy message.
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Business & money: Sony boosted by decision to release DVDs exclusively on Japanese firm's next-generation recording format
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Toshiba Corp (6502.T) is planning to give  up on its HD DVD format for high definition DVDs, conceding  defeat to the competing Blu-Ray technology backed by Sony Corp  (6758.T), a company source said on Saturday.
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Its proprietary audio technology was a flop, says Sony, as it announces at a Berlin consumer electronics trade fair it will shutter its Connect digital music store and open its portable media players to other formats.
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Sony&#39;s music unit is abandoning its CDs that use built-in technology that limits copying them, after pushing the program for two years.
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Sony has decided to give up on the music and video download business, choosing to focus on its struggling PlayStation group instead. The closing of Connect would also mean the loss of at least 20 jobs, paidcontent.org reported over the weekend.
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TOKYO -- Toshiba said Tuesday it will no longer develop, make or market HD DVD players and recorders, handing a victory to rival Blu-ray disc technology in the format battle for next-generation video.