Backstory on the SONY Rootkit Fiasco of 2005

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The discussion centers around the 2005 SONY Rootkit scandal, where SONY attempted to combat music piracy by embedding rootkits in their CDs, which compromised the security of Windows machines. Users express skepticism about the effectiveness of older rootkit detection tools like Mark Russinovich's Rootkit Revealer, noting that it may not work on current Windows versions. There is a consensus that commercial antivirus software, such as Norton and McAfee, has become overly intrusive and may not be necessary for users who practice safe browsing habits. Instead, Windows Defender, combined with knowledge of browser permissions, is deemed sufficient for most users. For those concerned about security, using virtual machines for browsing is recommended. Regular security updates for Windows are also highlighted as important for maintaining system security.
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Dave's Garage gets into the infamous SONY Rootkit fiasco of 2005 where SONY tried to stem music piracy by installing rootkits on all windows machines who played SONY music disks exposing those machones to other vulnerabilities due to mistakes in the code:



and from wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_BMG_copy_protection_rootkit_scandal
 
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I think Sony still owes me a free CD. I did get the $7.50 I think.
 
What do you think of Mark Russinovich's Rootkit Revealer? Do you think Norton's basic would provide similar ? I searched on YouTube only to get a suspicious link asking me to click.
 
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WWGD said:
What do you think of Mark Russinovich's Rootkit Revealer?
I think it worked fine 15 years ago, but it dosn't work on any current version of Windows.

WWGD said:
Do you think Norton's basic would provide similar ?
I think Norton, McAfee and other commercial protection software have become as obnoxious as some of the malware they are supposed to protect against. You don't need them...

WWGD said:
I searched on YouTube only to get a suspicious link asking me to click.
...unless you are the kind of person who clicks on suspicious links.

Windows Defender and the knowledge of how to change permissions for pop-ups in whatever browser(s) you use are all you should need. If you don't trust yourself when browsing then install VirtualBox or VMWare and browse in a virtual machine.
 
pbuk said:
I think it worked fine 15 years ago, but it dosn't work on any current version of Windows.


I think Norton, McAfee and other commercial protection software have become as obnoxious as some of the malware they are supposed to protect against. You don't need them...


...unless you are the kind of person who clicks on suspicious links.

Windows Defender and the knowledge of how to change permissions for pop-ups in whatever browser(s) you use are all you should need. If you don't trust yourself when browsing then install VirtualBox or VMWare and browse in a virtual machine.
I obviously didn't click on the link. Not quite that gullible.
Edit: I bet security patches and periodic updates to Windows help too.
 
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