Mark from Sysinternals is a genius in the way he digs beneath the surface when things go wrong on a MS Windows system. In his
latest blog entry he unveils Sony's dirty tricks of implementing malicious and buggy software to enforce their DRM licenses on audio CDs. Some interesting discoveries:
- Sony uses DRM technology from a 3rd party ("Aries.sys" driver)
- The DRM is automatically installed without giving you explicit notice
- Sony tries to hide the fact that any software is installed (using various "cloaking" techniques)
- You cannot uninstall the DRM (unless you're Mark and a computer genious)
- The software is poorly written and continuously uses CPU resources even if unused.
Bottom line: The price you have to pay for being an honest customer is to live with restrictive and buggy DRM which renders your PC unstable and slows it down.
Related: Microsoft Windows Internals by Mark E. Russinovich