MITRE assigned the video with the song Janet Jackson "Rhythm Nation" the vulnerability identifier of CVE-2022-38392 due to the disruption of the normal operation of some old laptops during its playback. This composition can lead to an emergency shutdown of the system due to failures in the hard disk associated with the reproduction of certain resonance frequencies.
It is noted that the frequency in the clip coincides with the fluctuations occurring in disks rotating at 5400 rpm, which leads to a sharp increase in the amplitude of their oscillations. Information about the problem was shared by a Microsoft employee, who told a story from the weekdays of the support service of Windows XP about: How to deal with the complaints of users of one of the major manufacturers who revealed that "Rhythm Nation" leads to disruptions of individual models of drives based on hard magnetic disks used in the laptops produced by this manufacturer.
The problem was solved by the manufacturer through the addition of a special filter to the sound system that does not allow unwanted frequencies during sound playback. But such a workaround did not provide full protection, for example, the case mentioned where the failure was repeated not on the device on which the clip was played, but on a nearby laptop. The problem was also recorded on laptops from other manufacturers sold around 2005. Information about the effect has been disclosed since it has already lost its relevance and the problem does not manifest in modern hard drives.
--Full Circle magazine #183
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