How rude [LWN.net]

How rude

Posted Nov 15, 2005 19:20 UTC (Tue) by bojan (subscriber, #14302)
Parent article: Sony's rootkit: an update

> Most people, I think, don't even know what a rootkit is, so why should they care about it?

If this isn't the rudest thing I've read in a long time... Imagine a doctor saying to a patient in hospital: "Don't worry, you wouldn't know what your illness is even if I told you, but you'll die from it nonetheless." Now wouldn't a world like that be grand?

I just hope whoever sues them goes all the way.

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No wonder Sony doesn't sell/market software

Posted Nov 15, 2005 23:16 UTC (Tue) by pr1268 (subscriber, #24648) [Link]

I think that Sony's (Thomas Hess) above response is, well perhaps, somewhat accurate - I know a lot of people who have no clue what a rootkit is.

But that makes it no less excusable or inappropriate. Sony/BMG's focus is on media (Movies, music, etc.), and has nothing to do with software (except for their desktop/laptop business, and perhaps a bunch of that is also outsourced). As such, I don't get the impression that they knew what First4Internet's XCP technology actually did to users' computers when they inserted the CD and started clicking.

The way I see what unfolded with Sony/First4Internet is:

Sony needs some DRM software to curb casual piracy and full-blown P2P file sharing.
Since Sony is not in the software business, they contract out to companies whose expertise is writing Windows-based software to create a DRM utility which can be easily included on mass-produced music CD's.
First4Internet wins a contract, and they demo their XCP product to a bunch of Sony executives, showing how their software will enable the user to play the CD only with the provided media player, limit ripping to three copies, and send information about the user, his/her computer, and any other pertinent (or not) information across the Internet to some server.
The Sony executives, whose focus is on non-software media, are delighted at how well the XCP software thwarts piracy. They order their factories to include the XCP software, not knowing themselves what a rootkit is (much less the naive, unsuspecting consumers to whom they're targeting their media discs).
Mark Russinovich discovers the rootkit, traces it to its source, posts his Blog, and the excrement hits the fan all over the Internet.

I suspect that Thomas Hess didn't know what a rootkit was until that excrement hit him in the face. Thus, he might have been speaking more for himself than for all of those media consumers whose PC's are now infected.

Truly a shame...

At this level, ignorance == incompetence

Posted Nov 16, 2005 0:31 UTC (Wed) by MarkVandenBorre (subscriber, #26071) [Link]

I suspect that Thomas Hess didn't know what a rootkit was until that excrement hit him in the face.

From a certain level of responsibility, ignorance equals incompetence.
The people responsible for this debacle are incompetent at best, but most probably just guilty.

No wonder Sony doesn't sell/market software

Posted Nov 16, 2005 2:44 UTC (Wed) by bojan (subscriber, #14302) [Link]

> I think that Sony's (Thomas Hess) above response is, well perhaps, somewhat accurate - I know a lot of people who have no clue what a rootkit is.

Well it is accurate, all right, that most people don't know what a rootkit is. But what about the "why should they care about it" part? This implies, at least to me, that we are all just a bunch of idiots, mindless drones that don't (or shouldn't) care whether our privacy is invaded and our property damaged by Sony.

He's got obviously no shame if he's capable of saying something as offensive as that.

No wonder Sony doesn't sell/market software

Posted Nov 16, 2005 15:55 UTC (Wed) by ikm (subscriber, #493) [Link]

Good point, thanks for putting this out! SONY may well be an evil corporation (or, well, maybe not), but this incident does not neccessarily indicate the presence of some intentional malice plotted by some greedy execs. When choosing between malice and stupidity, the latter wins almost always. After all, it is just stupid to plant rootkits onto the consumers and think nobody would ever notice.

No wonder Sony doesn't sell/market software

Posted Nov 20, 2005 17:24 UTC (Sun) by ekj (subscriber, #1524) [Link]

But there's no connection (or very little) about knowing about something, and caring about something.

A person can very well have no idea whatsoever what say HIV is, but still care very much if someone intentionally infects them with it.

A person can very well have no idea whatsoever what a capacitor is, but still care very much if a leaky one turns their expensive computer into a paperweigth.

And a person can very well have no idea whatsoever what a rootkit is, but still care when a malevolent corporation secretly installs software on their computer that limits what they can do and spy on the user.

Knowing the technical term for something is not required for caring about the effects of something.

No wonder Sony doesn't sell/market software

Posted Nov 23, 2005 2:16 UTC (Wed) by ronaldcole (guest, #1462) [Link]

Even if your theory is right, Sony still pulled the trigger on that "gun" they bought.

If Sony still has enought assets to afford an attorney after they get their asses handed to them in a (red) hat, then they should sue First4Internet if they misrepresented their product to Sony.