The much-maligned copy protection program that Sony BMG Music Entertainment put on CDs last year is still posing a threat to computer users running certain versions of AOL or PestPatrol anti-spyware software.
The glitch may cause a computer’s CD-ROM drive to be disabled, according to the Texas attorney general’s office, which said Wednesday that the problem was discovered by officials who have been testing the XCP copy-protection technology as part of the state’s lawsuit against Sony BMG.
State investigators found that if a CD with XCP technology is loaded on a computer running AOL’s “Safety and Security Center” software, the program’s antispyware feature will attempt to delete the XCP components, but often while also disabling the CD-ROM’s configuration in the PC’s operating system.
The same glitch surfaced on computers running CA Inc.’s PestPatrol separately from AOL, the state said.
