How to Remove the Sony Rootkit XCP Uninstaller

Contributed by AlexTheBeast November 29, 2005  
Tagged: Windows spyware

The sony rootkit opens up a huge security problem on your system. However, sony’s rootkit uninstaller installs software that can open up your system to security exploits as well! Here is how to remove the uninstaller.

When news of sony’s rootkit first was made public, sony released a rootkit uninstaller. The problem is that this rootkit uninstaller had security problems as well. Here is the proof. Here is how to get rid of this security problem.

1. Browse to this folder:
\windows\Downloaded Program Files\

2. Find the file named CodeSupport Control
3. Right-click on it and select Remove
4. Confirm that it is okay for removal.
5. The software will be removed

If in step one, you do not find the file… you should search you system to make sure it is not there. If you have more than one installation of windows, I would search in all installations. My vista installation had the codesupport software installed too… although I never installed the rootkit uninstallation software there. I imagine the rootkit uninstallation software installs itself everywhere it sees a \windows directory.

How to search your system for the codesupport files:

1. Click Start
2. Click Search
3. Search for codesupport in all or part of the filenames
4. Once search finds it, right click and select Remove as directed above.

If you don’t find the files, you likely never installed sony’s rootkit removal software.

Please note that sony’s directions for removal are actually wrong. They tell you to remove a file called codesupport. The file is actually CodeSupport Control.