Sony's 'Rootkit' Is on 500,000 Systems, Expert Says (eWeek)

Sony BMG will have a big job ahead of it as it tries to replace all copies of controversial copy protection software, according to a computer security expert, who says that he has evidence there are more than 500,000 versions of the program installed worldwide.

Dan Kaminsky, an independent security researcher, discovered evidence that so-called "rootkit" style stealth programs developed by U.K. firm First 4 Internet Ltd. and used by Sony while conducting an audit of the DNS (Domain Name System) infrastructure. Sony BMG has declined past requests to comment on the number of systems that run the software, known as XCP. However, Kaminsky's figures, if true, suggest that the software, which shipped on CDs by just 20 Sony BMG artists, has already been distributed and installed widely around the world.

Sony BMG said on Tuesday that it would allow customers to exchange CDs with the XCP technology for copies that did not have the copy protection software installed. The company did not respond to e-mail and phone requests for comment on the number of XCP installations. First 4 Internet CEO Mathew Gilliat-Smith said he had no further comment on the controversy over XCP.

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privacy, rootkit, Hacking