This is the sort of thing people worry about when they worry about digital rights management. This article is quite technical (you can read the populist version, Dear Sony: Why Are You Acting Like a Criminal?) but the gist is clear: running a DRM-enabled CD from Sony (specifically, Sony BMG’s 'Get Right with the Man' CD by the Van Zant brothers) will result in disruptive (and apparently badly written) software being installed on your computer. The 'rootkit' files installed are cloaked from the user, yet open the computer up to hacking attacks, and can disrupt other applications or operations. As Mark says, "To paraphrase the cliché, friends won't let friends buy Sony CDs. Or, put another way, isn't hijacking a machine like this an act of... piracy?"
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