Jared W. Smith

Texas and the Electronic Frontier Foundation have filed suit against Sony BMG over their “rootkit” digital rights management scheme, which installs files that directly alter the operation of the Windows operating system surreptitiously on users’ machines when they insert particular Sony audio CDs, in order to prevent people from removing the digital rights management protection enclosed on said discs. The result is a system that is wide open to attack.

Bravo – I hope more state AGs decide to file suit, as schemes like this must be taken seriously and put to a stop. It’s refreshing to see that people in power realize that what is ours is ours, and while protecting intellectual property is generally important, it’s also important not to infringe on a user’s right to run his computer as he sees fit.