A computer expert has raised concerns about a tool recently released by Sony aimed at exposing the spyware protecting its music CDs, which could potentially crash computer systems and damage data.
Mark Russinovich, the first to discover Sony’s spyware protecting its music CDs, also found that Sony’s patch to address public backlash negatively impacts users’ computers.
Mark Russinovich, currently the Chief Software Architect at Winternals Software, stated that “the tool designed to unmask the CD music spyware, which Sony reluctantly released, can sometimes cause system crashes and data loss. The common symptoms include the infamous blue screen and white warning messages from Windows that Windows users dread the most.”
Russinovich explained that “Sony’s self-revealing tool may delete certain drivers in the Windows Registry, leading to the I/O system of Windows being unable to load drivers during system boot, ultimately resulting in Windows being rendered inoperable.”
Increasingly, complaints are emerging regarding Sony’s bizarre method of protecting its assets through spyware. The majority of modern security tools designed to combat spyware and scan for viruses are unable to detect the spyware on Sony’s music CDs. Experts have proposed a more effective method to counter this tool, which users can follow: Run the Run command from the Windows Start menu -> type the command sc delete $sys$aries -> restart your computer.
HOÀNG KIM ANH (According to TechWeb News)