God, I hope Eliot Spitzer is on top of this one...

So the State of Texas has done something I finally agree with, namely, suing SONY BMG for their rootkits. In case you haven't been listening, the rootkit is a series of files and registry hacks used to hide certain files (namely, the copy-protection files on the CD) from appearing to the user. However, the rootkit was written incompetently, and any hacker using the same prefix, $sys$, can hide their files on your computer, too. Further, SONY's official cloaking-removal tool doesn't uninstall their software, and it opens up further holes by compromising your registry and your internet security. Unofficial attempts to remove the rootkit, unless you know what you're doing, will disable your CD drivers, rendering the entire drive inoperable. Or, if you're really lucky, Windows will just break.

Hopefully, the AG of New York--the guy who went after Big Tobacco, the major investment scandals, etc.--is cruising Slashdot...