I don't know how many of you have heard of or have been following the latest news about Sony, but a lot of the tech blogs I read have been posting about it. Very long story short (to the best of my understanding since some of this stuff is just over my head), in an attempt to reduce illegal copying of CDs Sony tried out a new software (XCP Content Protection Technology). When you play a CD with this software on your computer, it installs a rootkit, which makes your computer more vulnerable to hackers. Also, if you somehow find this program on your computer and try to remove it, it will damage you computer. Okay, so that's my best description since I really don't understand the whole rootkit thing.
Ah yes, here we go: In true librarian form I shall point you toward a resource that can explain the whole Sony problem much better than I can. Check out the article "The Cover-Up Is the Crime" at Wired News.
Here's a list of the CDs that contain the hazardous XCP Content Protection Technology, so you can avoid buying them or playing them on your computer. Sony is going to re-release these CDs without the software on them at some point. Sony's official response is here. Looks like Sony is also letting you exchange a CD with the software for a CD that is software-free.
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