Spyware, viruses, & security : DVD ships with rootkit. The lesson was not learned.

Sony is at it again, and again, and......

In reply to: DVD ships with rootkit. The lesson was not learned. by R. Proffitt 

Well most know now about Sony's fiasco with installing their security/protection software into the rootkit of your PC if you ran any of their CD's with the copy protection on it.... and did it without your knowledge!

Well lo'n'behold Sony strikes again with it's owned "Securom" company. After several versions that screwed up various games in the past, several game companies have still decided to install their "protection" software on their games.
The two games I'm referring to in this post is F.E.A.R and Serious Sam 2. Both are great games! Both ran ok.... Well ok until I updated SS2 and tried to play it again.
Now whan I click the games icon the error message "A required Security Module cannot be activated". There is no way to correct this!!
After hours with tech support (email, live chat)and even contacting Securom and running their "testing" program (plus another one they sent me to run not listed on their web site) According to them (all the tech supports) there is nothing wrong with my PC, system, all is up to date, I have no protection circumventing software, nor none of the programs listed on their web site..... Nothing is wrong!
Well other then I now have two games, about $90.00 worth I can't play at all. No un/in stall, deleting registry keys, nothing will allow me to play either game. Securom has completely disabled the ability to play these games I purchased.
The last communication I got two days ago from Securom was "Thanks, we'll foreward this info to our programming dept."

Do a Google search for the error I posted above and you'll find hundreds of posts from every game that has used Securom protection and still game companies are using it!
One European game company is sueing Securom. All problems aside, do they sue because it made some of their games non-playable?.... No!, Because people are still able to copy their games!
Kind of a forget our customers, were being copied attitude.

What are gamers to do? Sue in a class action suit?
Sue the game companies for not being able to play what we purchase?
Boycott? Who?
I'm afraid what it boils down to, is just the fact that Sony once again takes the attitude that it has the God given right to impose whatever it desires upon us all, no matter the problems it may envoke.
They've always taken this attitude (remember all those stuck with beta recorders?)

I for one stopped buying their products years ago after problems with their electronics and their extremely poor customer support. After pursuing problems with a couple of their electronics beyond customer support, I basically got a letter from some exicutive (if I remember correctly one of the VP's of cust. supp.)
The letter more or less said "Sorry you're having problems, we know there was a problem, too bad your the one stuck with it". And in reply to the rudness of the support manager he said "Our support people are the best and if they were rude to you, it was because you were rude to them!"
After not getting any satisfactory response from support I politely asked to speak to a supervisor and when she came on I mentioned the other support person refused to give me the complaint dept. The supervisor refused as well, so I asked for an address and she gave it to me. I thanked her and mailed the complaint.
Thats being rude?

So that brings us to today, Sony hasn't changed at all. First the "root kit" fiasco, now this Securom continous problems (and apparently still haven't gotten it right yet!)

Be polite..., be honest and purchase legal CD's or games and you're still treated like you don't matter, your non Sony owned items are theirs for the tweaking, tampering or just plain damaging, who cares, it isn't their stuff they're playing around with...... It's yours!