More fallout over Sony's copy-protected CDs

There appears to be more fallout coming in regarding Sony Music's recent copy-protection system. According to the Washington Post, a class-action lawsuit has been filed in California alledging that the copy-protection software falls under the scope of the Consumer Legal Remedies Act and violates the Consumer Protection Against Spyware Act.

Mark Russinovich, who uncovered the original "rootkit," also demonstrated that even the new version software contacts Sony music with identifiable information as well as causing crashes and potential data loss.

Some others have claimed that the software also prevents the "ripping" of even non-copy protected CDs.

One Sony executive attributed all the complaints to ignorance, saying:

Most people, I think, don't even know what a rootkit is, so why should they care about it? The software is designed to protect our CDs from unauthorized copying, ripping.

Security experts have responded that the software creates a new vunerability that could be easily exploited by malicious individuals. That argument was given some credence today when a new "trojan" was discovered that takes advantage of the software. Accordingly, anti-virus software from Sophos and McAfee will remove the software, and Microsoft is considering adding support to their upcoming Windows Defender software as well.

The EFF, an digital rights organization, compiled a list of "rootkit" copy-protected albums. Among those are recent releases from The Dead 60s and Acceptance's Phantoms.
The protection placed on the CDs is in reponse to RIAA claims of $4.2 billion in losses per year attributed to file sharing.