Sony settles rootkit suit: $1.5M to states, users file for refunds

Sony BMG this week settled a lawsuit brought by California and Texas over the infamous XCP "anti-piracy" spyware trojan. The media giant got off with a slap on the wrist for the long-running rootkit debacle, which affected nearly 5 million CDs — Sony will pay a total of $1.5 million to the states, and a smaller sum in customer refunds.


Customers in both states can file a claim with Sony BMG to receive refunds of up to $175. State officials estimate some 450,000 compact discs carrying the XCP software were sold in California, while about 130,000 were sold in Texas. Customers have 180 days to file claims, which must include a description of how their computer was harmed and documentation of repair expenses. Some who used certain antispyware software to remove the programs installed by the Sony BMG CDs ended up with a glitch that disabled their CD-ROM drives.

As part of the settlements, Sony BMG also agreed not to distribute any compact discs loaded with any copy-protection software that hinders computer users from easily locating it or removing it from their computers. The record company also agreed to improve its disclosure practices.

Link to AP story. Link to previous BoingBoing coverage. (Thanks, ultranaut)