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Beastie Boys' New Album Silently Installs DRM Code
nfsilkey writes "After more than five years, the Beastie Boys have released a new album. It seems that the retail disc is bundled with a copy protection autoinstaller which silently silently puts itself onto the listener's computer. Many listeners are up in arms and some are venting their frustrations on the band's website."
It's hard to believe that a band that has prided itself on pushing the envelope and being controversial would do something like this. These people obviousle cared enough to buy the CD, why would the record industry need to protect themselves from them? It's just another way for them to control what we can and cannot do, thereby infringing on my rights. When I can't even listen to my music without worrying about what programs may be being installed on my computer, we've let them go too far.
As a computer, I am amused by the faith you have in technology.
it should be flat out illegal for anybody to install software on someone elses computer w/o the owners written permission - that goes for spyware, virus, marketing research firms, even Microsoft, and this. Just because you're network connected or pop in a CD doesn't give everybody and his brother the right to take over part of your machine in ANY way. It's so bizarre that govt. enforces access rights for govt business and military machines but personal home computers, pfft, it's like an open free for all.
try { do() || do_not(); } catch (JediException err) { yoda(err); }
"Fuck them. "
Funny, I'm sure thats what someone said when they realized how much they lost by people downloading their stuff and then decided to add this DRM crap.
The surprise isn't how often we make bad choices; the surprise is how seldom they defeat us.
This is why I love owning a Mac :D No viruses. No silly self-installing apps.
Yet.
It's a simple fact that people expect to be able copy their CDs.
Lately people have been prosecuted for writing a virus, well, whoever wrote this needs to be prosecuted the same way.
1. It is malicious (prevents you from copying the CD as you noramlly would be able to.
2. It silently installs itself, masquarading as a
standard Audio CD (I'm sorry, 5" music disc)
How is that different than any other trojan horse?
17" eMac $799.00 USD for Combo Drive version with 40GB HD or 999.00USD for the 8X DVD-R/RW drive version with 80GB HD.
Not to mention all of the bundled software.
How much is virus free a, commercial software compatiblity (photoshop and most of the hottest games) computing experience worth to you?
Yes, linux is immune to windows viruses but it lacks commercial software, hardware support and ease of use.
Jesus was a compassionate social conservative who called individuals to sin no more.
I really do hope the courts do something about this passive signing away of your rights. I call it passive because the agreements define for themselves what agreeing to them means, so they are by nature fraudulent. So buying a product is a legal signature? So is opening a CD case, or installing software? They can put all the "Read the EULA"'s they want, but I don't see how any specific number of warnings suddenly merits compliance by law.
By reading this you acknowledge my right to use your computer to research how better to write future comments. Oh yeah you have to give me your stuff too if you break our agreement. By reading this sentence you have broken our agreement. The next bag of potato chips you open signifies your compliance to turn over all properties that can be used to drink out of.
when boys who where rebels become middle aged...
Beastie boys my ass
The Kruger Dunning explains most post on
They're entertainers. Revolution was never their intent. MONEY is their intent. All rock bands want to get rich and famous once they get signed. If they can flaunt their politics and change the world along the way, hey, that's cool. But those checks had better keep coming. Anyone that thinks that this isn't the aim of almost all bands from the start are fools. And please, use John Lennon as an example. Paul McCartney has said that during songwriting, Lennon would say things like "Cool, I've got a boat, now let's write a Pool" when penning new songs.
There's no such thing as a band "selling out". That's naive bullshit. They're an entertainment act, created to make lots of money. Period. They preach the revolution, because they know you guys will pony up your cash and buy into it. It sells records.
Life is hard, and the world is cruel
And if they say no, the goddamned thing doesn't play, they take it back to the store and get a refund.
What this evil corporation is saying, is: "Fuck you. We own you. We own your computer. You'll take it and like it, because protecting our digital rights trump fucking up your piece of shit from Dell, you fucking Joe Sixpack sheeple. If you don't like it call your Congresscritter. Oops, we own it, too."
They say the first thing to go is your penis. Well, it's either that or your brain. I forget which...
Looks like maybe the days of "it's okay, nothing will ever infect my machine, since nobody bothers to write things like this for macs" are coming to an end.
...and you can thank your iPod for that one.
What bothers the hell out of me, though, is that it can be done.
How in the world can I trust *anything* that willy-nilly follows whatever orders someone else tells *my* machine to do, leaving me powerless to override? The most surprising thing to me is that business is taking this. Do they really think only "good guys" know where the unlocked back doors to the operating system are?
Stuff like this just convinces me further that anyone even thinking of using this kind of system in a business environment needs to have his salary and standing in his organization re-evaluated.
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
It may not be completely accurate, but it is a factor.
Other factors include such things as the TYPE of person using the platform in question. While this is purely anectedotal, Most of the Mac users I run into have one of several attitudes that make them less likely to be virus writers. Many are proffessional/serious hobbiest audio/visual people and preffer to spend thier time on that. Most Mac owners are very pro Apple and Evangelize the apple heavilly, writing Mac viruses would counter productive.
Another is the anger issue. I would wager comparatively few Mac users hate apple compared to the number who hate Microsoft.
And Finally there is inherent differences in the platforms themselves. Windows security model and codebase seems very exploit friendly to my mind, and with OSX being bsd at the core is most likely less malware friendly (I couldn't comment on previous mac os's, but bsd seems to be widly held as doing well in this regard).
And I'd like to point out at least one flaw in the site you linked to. It pointed out some windows exploits target as small or smaller a subsegment of windows users as the macs overal market segment. This completely misses the fact all the toolkits virus writers have developed for windows sofar (A great many) are much more easily adapted to target a single windows application than they are to port to a mac, where so much is different right down to processor.
Mycroft
https://signup.leagueoflegends.com/?ref=4c3ed6600b6ea
The CD is the vector. Give it to a friend, it perpetuates. Direct-copy it, it probably perpetuates. Remember, worms perpetuate without user action. Viruses perpetuate with user action.
Seriously: How does someone so blatantly shortsighted manage to breathe?
Since when has this country used intellectual elite as a pejorative term?
Not only is that site heavy on the propaganda, light on the facts, the author isn't aware of how the whole malware situation works. Spyware type malware gets on the user's sustem through an action of the user. For the web variety you visit a site and a popup asks you if you want to install Comet Cursor, or whatever the spyware calls itself. If you click yes, it downloads and installs. For the trojan type, it just piggybacks on other apps. Kazaa RQUIRES you to install and leave installed several peices of spyware to use it. It even TELLS you this. None the less, people install it willingly.
There is NO DEFENCE against this so long as the user has administrative access to the system. If they WANT to install it, they will. If it asks for admin, big deal, software does that all the time when it installs. I've never seen a Mac user give a second though to entering the root password in during a software install.
For viruses, the situation is about the same. The vast majority of viruses these days are e-mail viruses. A person recieves an e-mail that has an attachment claiming to be something they should open. They do so, and it installs a virus, that then proceeds to e-mail itself out to people on their contact list. Again, this is a USER INITATED ACTION. It's not sneaking itself in through a hole, it's waltzing in through the front door. Again nothing you can do if the user has admin access.
As for exploit viruses, which are a good deal rarer than e-mail viruses, these could possibly reduced on alternate platforms. It is possible that MacOS really is less prone to exploits than Windows. Unforunately, this isn't really testable at this point since there is less effort devoted to looking for OX-X exploits than for Windows exploits. However it is dangerous huburis to think that a UNIX basis equals security. I invite you to look at the history of Solaris/SunOS security holes. Here is real, enterprise grade UNIX, and it has a rich history of security problems. Again, this is not ot say that MacOS might not be better, but one cannot infer it is better from the fact that it is UNIX, or from the fact that it has less found exploits (that you don't know they are there does not mean they are not there).
Oh and by the way, saying "Windoze" just makes you, and your argument, look immature. It does no good since you aren't going to convince anyone that Windows has faults though simple name calling. Keep it professional and people are more likely to listen to what you have to say.
Ahh, good point. I also hear you can stop 100% of popups and ads by having a text only browser. Further I'm told that ALL remote exploits are stopped by not having a computer on the Itnernet.
Amazing isn't it? If there is no service, there can be no denial. The problem is that most people WANT things that make their life easier, their computing experience nicer. Trying to advertise an non-Windows OS as better because it lacks a feature is not a very good idea. That shows lack of polish and completeness to most people.
I can't blame Microsoft for the auto-run thing. It was simply a way to make the computing experience easier on their users. Rather than needing to find the correct file to run (which is usually setup, but not always), simply make the CD come up by itself when inserted. It isn't their fault that some asshats have corrupted this in to installing software without user consent.
This is akin to blaming the creators of the SMTP spec for SPAM. They created a useful spec that allowed for the non-realtime interchange of messages. Good idea too, as it was one of two killer apps of the Internet (the web being the other). Without e-mail, I'm not sure the Internet would have taken off like it did. Well, some fucks have now figured out how to abuse it for their own gain. That's the fault of the spammers, not the creators of SMTP.
So advocate Linux on the things it does better, not the things it does not do.
Why was this modded insightful?? Presumably the moderators are as dumb as the author. The "or" before "with intent to injure or defraud" means that this is not a necessary provision, just that it may be sufficient. Learn English, people...
Call me old fashioned, but I like a dump to be as memorable as it is devastating - Bender
If you do not have admin privileges on an OSX Mac, then no software can install, whether classic or otherwise. Also, when an audio CD is inserted the user can be prompted whether to allow an install. That install STILL will not happen if the user is not admin. So, all Mac users should make a non-admin account for day today use and another admin account for installing software and other admin tasks.
AAW
All theory is gray
The EULA's power stems from how a computer works. Because a computers' processor has registers, it must copy the cd over and over and read/write it in order to play the CD. This essentially requires you to have their permission to copy.
No it doesn't. The supremes have ruled that copying a copyrighted work is perfectly fine so long as it is required to actually make use of said work (other conditions notwithstanding). If I own a copy of some CD, I can play it - this isn't really debatable. If the CD contains an EULA, I can ignore it, as I already have the right to use it under copyright law. You could make a similar argument for software, but I am not aware of any specific precedent.
"We returned the General to El Salvador, or maybe Guatemala, it's difficult to tell from 10,000 feet"
Heck yeah! I'll take a somewhat manageable DRM any day of the week instead of some auto-loaded DRM crap that I can't control (or much-less know about) myself.
And the message I get from this is:
Do not buy this album. If I want to hear it, download it instead.
Their instruction is just crystal clear. Yes; it sucks that Windows auto-installs crap off CDs, and yes, there's easy ways around that. But to arrive at that is to miss the point. The point is that if you don't want their DRM, don't buy the product... you can get the music for a nice $0.00, without rewarding their vile practice.
If people in the biz are reading this, please take note: DRM offends and insults and disrespects those who you're trying to sell to. You're only getting sales from the ignorant, and I'm working to reduce their numbers by telling as many friends / family members as I can to stop buying big label music. Flat out stop. Download, buy used, or go with small, respectable labels. (I do still buy, generally direct from small artists; the rest... fuck 'em. Not a dime to the RIAA from me.)
If you agree, you can help... simply assist as many people as you can to find alternatives to buying big label music. If people really want the latest Beastie / other-pop album, there's torrents, k-lite, etc... and the price is better. Is it wrong? Is killing in a war wrong? I'm working to destroy my enemy or change their stance here; that is the nature of war. You gotta fight... It may be company policy, but you're still sell-out bitches, Beastie Boys (and I love some of your work... oh, well).
In the 1980s. The software industry tried all this copy control nonsense with Commodore 64 software. Many companies did not survive the backlash. The record labels will not learn until everyone stops buying. Any business that alienates their customers deserves to fail. Vote with your pocket books. Stop feeding the hand that bites you.
That's Bigboo TAY! TAY!
Is there any reason to have autorun "on" in the first place ? One of the first things I do when I set up a system is disable it. I would like to choose which app to use, not rely on the OS to decide. I saw a previous story about the new Velvet Revolver CD having copy protection. I came home after buying it, popped it into my CDR, and burned it to MP3 for my car player. I would have never known it was copt protected until I saw the story. BTW I have never had a DRM disk that would not burn in CDEX
Save a Life. Donate Blood. Please.
TCPA is an enabling technology to implement hardware-level digital control technology (DRM). The idea being that the'trusted platform module' has the ability to create locked boxes that the user of the computer can choose to run or to not run, but any code in that locked box cannot be modified by the user. (well, it can, but if it is, the platform module will refuse to relinquish decryption keys so it'll end up being nonfunctional.)
If I want to enforce a control technology on your computer, I need some way to keep users from modifying the very program enforcing my policy choices, I need TCPA or some other hardware control technology that keeps my program from being modified.
In one sense, this is security, I know that any sowftware runnign under TCPA/Palladium won't be changed by any virus and will only be given decryption keys only if its unmodified by any virus or worm. But at another level, it is *the* enabling technology to let anyone install *arbitrary* digital control technology, creating *arbitrary* hoops for me to go through on my computer before I can access the data it controls access to.
Can you say ripe for abuse?
Well - then I'm waiting for the first worm that ;-)
installs DRM as well as a backdoor and cannot
be legally removed.
The false or fraudulent part? It's fine to sell people a CD which says it's "copy protected" that is hard to copy. But it's not fine if that CD is designed to install stuff onto people's computers without their explicit permission - remember they bought the CD to listen to the stuff, not to install software, especially software that is USELESS or perhaps even damaging to them and only USEFUL to the CD creators.
This is "trojan horse" software.
If this is legal then creators of webpages could legally install software of their choice into systems of people who just browse a page containing copyrighted content, and say it's "copy protection". e.g. install stuff like monitoring/blocking software so that they could keep track of the user's activities - "to ensure that the terms of use are complied to".
Even if there's an agreement with lots of fine-print to click on doesn't necessarily make it OK. Otherwise those wormmakers will be spreading those greeting card/screen saver stuff which does other things that's written in the fine print (like allow the worm makers to use the PC for whatever they want).
How about if I sold you a movie DVD that hypnotized you so that you would never ever willingly make copies of that DVD for whoever or whatever reason? A "Copy Protected" label doesn't count. If the DVD was explicitly about convincing people not to copy then that's different - there is no or little deception involved.
I have over 700 CDs, and on average buy about 60 or so a year. I do not copy my CDs and I have no copied CDs as I respect intellectual property and feel that artists should be appropriately rewarded for their hard work.
However, after ill-advisedly buying a copy prohibited disk (Norah Jones), I had to get my car serviced to get the disk out. This cost me a morning of my time, and $70, plus I have a disk I can't use and couldn't return as Borders felt that I had copied it, even though I showed them the VW dealership receipt.
Norah has released a second album. I will not be buying it. I will not buy any copy prohibited disks. Ever. Not even if you pay for my lost time and my bills to get my stuff repaired when playing music I legally bought and used in usual fashion.
Wise up or go bust.
Andrew van der Stock
It's weird, technically, it's a virus. It spreads onto your system without your knowledge and prevents the computer from doing some function. Glad we use Linux, we're immune from all these WinViruses ;)
What some people don't realize is that sampling is part of a very old tradition. Many jazz and classical compositions have been enriched by incorporating material from other sources. Often the borrowed material is just as recognizeable as a sampled song, so it's not like this is something that has been hidden.
This practice is in many ways similar to allusion in literature. By making reference to earlier works, one can enhance the depth of one's own work. Ezra Pound said, "Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal" and this statement can be generalized to all forms of art.
My only political goal is to see to it that no political party achieves its goals.
"Autorun" is one of the most irritating features of Windows. It's easily disabled, but at the cost of losing "notification" when you insert or remove a CD, which means you have to manually prompt for a refresh sometimes. But it's better than some installer taking over every time you insert a program disk to refer to something or copy some files. Trusting to "pressing the shift key" to defeat it on each insertion is about as reliable as using the withdrawal method of birth control; pretty soon your PC is going to get knocked up.
It's not that hard, you can do it. Better yet, write a script and run it on your friends' computers, too. Be proactive about this shit.
r l= /library/en-us/shellcc/platform/shell/programmersg uide/shell_basics/shell_basics_extending/autorun/a utoplay_reg.asp
http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?u
Oh, and not buying CDs from bands that have no respect for you would be a good idea, too.
What people don't also realize is that song swapping is an old tradition, which helps keep old groups alive and helps new groups become more popular through word of mouth. I would say that literally the majority of the classic rock and underground songs that I listen to, I would never have known about if it wasn't for the fact that I could give a group a try by downloading MP3's. Then provided that I KNOW that I'm getting more than a couple good tracks, I buy the CD to support the group
What some people don't realize is that sampling is part of a very old tradition. Many jazz and classical compositions have been enriched by incorporating material from other sources. Often the borrowed material is just as recognizeable as a sampled song, so it's not like this is something that has been hidden.
This practice is in many ways similar to allusion in literature. By making reference to earlier works, one can enhance the depth of one's own work. Ezra Pound said, "Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal" and this statement can be generalized to all forms of art.
... which completely undermines the use of copyrights and "intellectual property" in the arts in the first place. Think about it: Much of the idea of the copyright revolves around this notion that men are completely unaffected by previous works--as if their art is somehow independently conjured through the power of the artist's superior intellect.
What bullshit. No man is quite literally an island. We are all affected and shaped, by our language, culture, body of sciences, collection of arts and so on. To say that the artist is the sole "owner" of the resultant art is utterly insulting and ultimately counterproductive.
-Grym
You really should have been modded troll for that.
And it's not even true. The first method only stops automatic selection of the program to open the content with, for example WMP for audio CDs, ACDSee for photos. It does not prevent executables specified in autorun.inf from being loaded.
The other 2 methods are not simple. Did you work out that reg entry or did you read about it on the web?
Thought so.
In win95, users could work it out for themselves, or if not it was in the manual.
# cat
Damn, my RAM is full of llamas.
Damn it, I've got mod points, but nobody has bothered responding with anything worth modding up, and you're not wrong, so I'm not going to mod you down. When can I get rid of these bothersome mod points? Oh, well.
The problem with using a non-privileged account in Windows is not so much the OS itself as the applications. Most old applications are not multi-user aware, and even many new ones are plain broken as well.
I think it's been fixed in later versions, but running the Quake 3 level editor as non-admin just didn't work in Windows a couple of years ago. I could use it fine in Linux, as a normal user, at the same time, because no Linux app tries to store the user's files in a directory outside ~/ and so on -- no ordinary app needs special privileges. In Windows, many quite normal apps demand full Administrator privileges for no reason at all, apart from that they were developed for systems that had no privilege separation, or on systems where the developers just didn't bother running as something other than admin and never imagined anyone else would.