[Web4lib] Sony and Operating System

[Robin Boulton]

I heard about this first on NPR about a week ago. It hasn't been an issue
for me - and it won't; I would never (knowingly) allow Sony  or anyone else
to put rootkit software on a machine under my control. This is one service I
will *not* be extending to patrons if I can possible stop it.



> -----Original Message-----
> From: web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org 
> [mailto:web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Thomas, 
> Susan Elaine
> Sent: Wednesday, November 09, 2005 1:35 PM
> To: Web4Lib
> Subject: [Web4lib] Sony and Operating System
> 
> This message comes for the AUTOCAT listserv. Has anyone else 
> encountered this problem and if so what actions have you 
> taken, if any?  
> 
> Susan Thomas
> Head of Collection Development
> Schurz Library
> Indiana University South Bend
> (574) 520-5500
> suethoma at iusb.edu
> 
> 
> I don't know if anyone has been following this, but for those 
> of you who have collections with CDs, be aware that there is 
> a potentially fatal problem with the new anti-piracy software 
> that comes with new Song/BMG titles. These CDs come bundled 
> with their own player, which has to be installed in order for 
> the CD to run. This program then limits the number of copies 
> that can be made from the CD to three. However, in doing this 
> it also installs a rootkit.
> 
> Rootkits, according to Mark Russinovich, who writes a 
> computer blog, are "cloaking technologies that hide files, 
> Registry keys, and other system objects from diagnostic and 
> security software, and they are usually employed by malware 
> attempting to keep their implementation hidden."
> What this rootkit does is actually rewrite parts of the code 
> on your OS.
> Trying to delete these files may cripple your system, and may 
> leave it vulnerable to other viruses and worms that 
> capitalize on security weaknesses in the new code. It may 
> also lead to the "Blue Screen of Death" and potential loss of data.
> 
> Note that nowhere in the licensing agreement we all click 
> without reading does it say that using the CD will alter your 
> OS or rewrite your computer's code. It is also very hard to 
> get the uninstall program from Sony, and it doesn't seem to 
> work very well if you do get it.
> 
> The original problem was noted in Russovich's blog:
> http://www.sysinternals.com/blog/2005/10/sony-rootkits-and-dig
> ital-right
> s.html
> 
> and its follow-up:
> http://www.sysinternals.com/blog/2005/11/more-on-sony-dangerou
> s-decloaki
> ng.html
> 
> It has also been covered by several news outlets and on it security
> websites:
> http://www.enterpriseitplanet.com/security/news/article.php/3561181
> 
> http://blogs.washingtonpost.com/securityfix/2005/11/hackers_ra
> id_so_1.ht
> ml
> (this has good links to other ariticles as well)
> 
> Because libraries buy and circulate CD copies to mulitple 
> users, you may want to take a look at the CDs in your 
> collection and avoid these. Apart from the spyware and 
> privacy aspects, this is potentially a huge security problem, 
> and may actually cause Windows PCs to fail. Caveat emptor.
> 
> Amanda Sprochi
> Health Sciences Cataloger
> J. Otto Lottes Health Sciences Library
> University of Missouri-Columbia
> Health Sciences Center
> One Hospital Drive
> Columbia, MO  65212
> (573) 882-0461
> sprochia at health.missouri.edu
> -----Original Message-----
> From: web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org
> [mailto:web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Reynolds, Bess
> Sent: Wednesday, November 09, 2005 1:04 PM
> To: kgs at bluehighways.com; Web4Lib
> Subject: RE: [Web4lib] Google Print NYPL Event November 17
> 
> For those of you on the east coast, tickets are now on sale 
> for an event at the New York Public Library on November 17.
> http://smarttix.com/show.aspx?showCode=BAT2
> 
> "The Battle Over Books" co-sponsored by Wired Magazine and featuring :
> 
> Allan Adler, Association of American Publishers Chris 
> Anderson, Wired Magazine David Drummond, Google Paul LeClerc 
> & David Ferriero, The New York Public Library Lawrence 
> Lessig, Stanford Law School Nick Taylor, The Authors Guild 
> 
> Bess Reynolds
> Technical Services Manager
> Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org
> [mailto:web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of K.G. Schneider
> Sent: Wednesday, November 09, 2005 10:52 AM
> To: 'Web4Lib'
> Subject: RE: [Web4lib] Google Print
> 
> >  For the digitizing project, it seems a fair question to 
> ask if Google 
> > Print fully exploits the existing catalog records for each 
> book out of 
> > the cooperating libraries. They say a library spends as 
> much money on 
> > an original catalog entry as they do to buy most books. So 
> the manual
> labor
> > has
> > already been paid for by the libraries themselves.
> >  (Hmmm, another way in which Google may be getting an 
> incredibly good
> > deal.)
> 
> If they are using the human-generated metadata, this makes me 
> wonder if Google has a stake in humans continuing to produce 
> this metadata? (Put it another way, would Google pay for cataloging?) 
> 
> If they aren't using it, and they create a system that works 
> well without it, what does that say about the future of the 
> ILS? (That's bordering on a rhetorical question...)
> 
> I bet they're using it to figure out how to mimic its 
> function through AI.
> 
> Karen G. Schneider
> kgs at bluehighways.com
> 
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