Want to Get Away With Black Hat Hacking?

Get thee to a multi-national company.

Sony which shipped a partiularly nasty form of spyware called a rootkit on 15 million CDs settled with Texas and California's Attorneys General for $1.5 million in fines. Customers who had their computers damaged after Sony gave out false information on how to remove the spyware can get up to $175.

But. no one at Sony will face any jail time for hijacking user's computers.

What's Sony got planned for the future with its "copy protection" software?

We are reviewing all aspects of our content protection initiatives to be sure that they are secure and user-friendly for consumers. The consumer experience is our primary concern, and our goal is to help bring our artists' music to as broad an audience as possible. As we develop new initiatives, we will continue identifying new ways to meet consumers' demands for flexibility in how they listen to music, while protecting intellectual property rights.

Right. "Consumer experience" is not their primary concern. Maximizing their profits by controlling your fair use rights is their primary concern.

Remember, this spyware brought to you by the same multinational that littered urban neighborhoods with illegal graffiti...

Eliot at Listening Post had this first and gives advice for filing a claim and buying CDs in the future.

Photo: Jaroslavd