How can you tell if a CD is infectious?

From the packaging, it's very hard to tell if a music CD is going to infect your computer with spyware, a rootkit, or similar malicious, anti-customer technology.

There is no standard way that music companies use to warn you that a CD is infected with Suncomm's Mediamax spyware, which reports on your listening habits back to Sony, and which can't be uninstalled using the Windows uninstaller. The MediaMax spyware installs itself even if you decline the "agreement" that is put on your screen when you first insert the CD.

Sony is being sued for including both the MediaMax spyware and the XCP rootkit (which enables virus-writers to opportunistically and invisibly seize control of your PC) on its music CDs, but lots of other labels use MediaMax spyware, along with numerous other malicious DRM programs.

EFF has prepared a guide to helping you spot and avoid Mediamax spyware, with a list of CDs believed to carry the infection, along with a gallery and slideshow of the numerous different stickers, fine-print, and other indicia that Sony has used to disclose that the CD on the shelf contains spyware.

But buyer beware: this problem goes well beyond Sony. Most of the major labels have decided that they need to punish their remaining customers with infectious technologies. I don't trust them, so I've just stopped buying CDs. Between mashups, Creative Commons licensed music, Internet radio, and my gigantic collection of tracks ripped from my old CDs, I have all the music I need for now. If a hot band comes out with a hot album, they'd better be willing to sell me Oggs or MP3s, 'cause I've had it with CDs. There's no music worth risking my data for.

Link

(Thanks, Kurt!)