Dunstan et al v. comScore, Inc.

Filing 103

MEMORANDUM by comScore, Inc. in support of motion to compel 102 Plaintiffs to Produce Documents and Things (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A - Declaration of Brown, # 2 Exhibit B - Letter)(Bowland, Robyn)

EXHIBIT A

99999.77815/4738143.1

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
EASTERN DIVISION
MIKE HARRIS and JEFF DUNSTAN,
individually and on behalf of a class of similarly
CASE NO. 1:11-cv-5807
situated individuals
Judge Holderman
Plaintiff,
Magistrate Judge Kim
v.
COMSCORE, INC., a Delaware corporation
Defendant.

DECLARATION OF MICHAEL BROWN
I, Michael Brown, hereby declare and state based upon my personal knowledge as
follows:
1.

I am the Chief Technology Officer ("CTO") at comScore, Inc. ("comScore") and

have held that position since February 2011. Prior to being named CTO, I held various positions
in the technology group since comScore’s founding in 1999, and I was the chief architect of the
comScore software.
2.

My current office is located at comScore’s offices in Reston, Virginia.

3.

As part of my responsibilities, I am aware of the information regarding comScore

panelists stored in comScore's databases. I am also aware of how to identify information
regarding a particular panelist based on information gleaned from an inspection of his or her
computer.
4.

For example, by inspecting registry keys on a specific machine running a

Windows-based operating system, comScore can search for the Machine Identifier assigned to
the computer by the comScore software. By knowing the Machine Identifier, comScore could
4736686_1.DOC

identify information, attributed to that particular machine, that was collected by comScore's
software and stored in comScore's databases. Thus, comScore would be able to verify the
installation of the comScore software and would be able to determine the date of installation and
the date at which the software ceased communicating with comScore servers. The Machine
Identifier could be discerned through an inspection of the following registry keys and their
children on a computer running a Windows-based operating system:



HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\Current
Version\Uninstall
5.

Even if comScore is unable to determine the Machine Identifier, an inspection of

a computer running a Windows-based operating system would allow comScore to determine
whether its software had been installed on the subject computer by examining the following
registry keys and their children:



HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows
NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Notify
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Curre
ntVersion\Winlogon\Notify
6.

Files contained in one of the following directories would also provide additional

information regarding the download and use of comScore's software:





C:\Program Files\RelevantKnowledge
C:\Program Files\PremierOpinion
C:\Program Files (x86)\RelevantKnowledge
C:\Program Files (x86)\PremierOpinion
7.

The existence of .osa files in the following locations would indicate that the

computer user was a comScore panelist at one time:




C:\Windows\Temp\
C:\Documents and Settings\[USER]\Local Settings\Temp
C:\Users\[USER]\AppData\Local\Temp

4736686_1.DOC

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8.

For computers that were still configured with the comScore software in or after

November 2010, the computer's Media Access Control ("MAC") addresses could be used to
determine whether the computer user was a comScore panelist and would enable comScore to
create a link between the computer and data contained in comScore's database. To determine a
computer's MAC addresses, the command "ipconfig /all" would need to be run on the actual
computer, as the MAC address is physically stored on the computer hardware itself as opposed to
being assigned by the operating system software.
9.

Information regarding installation of a virus and/or antivirus software may also be

stored in the registry files of a Windows-based operating system. Depending on the type of
antivirus software, information may also be found on the computer detailing the programs that
were detected and quarantined by the antivirus software.
10.

For computers that have the comScore software installed and that run on a

Macintosh operating system, the comScore Machine Identifier would be located in the following
directory: /Applications/PremierOpinion. As with Windows-based operating systems, the
Machine Identifier would allow comScore to verify the installation of the software, the date of
installation, the date at which the software ceased communicating with comScore servers, and
the information regarding the user collected by comScore's software and stored in comScore's
databases.
11.

Additionally, an inspection of a computer running a Macintosh-based operating

system would allow comScore to determine whether its software had been installed on the
subject computer by examining the following directories and subdirectories:



/usr/libexec
/System/Library/LaunchDaemons

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12.

The Trash folders and/or Recycle Bins contained on each computer may include a

portion or all of any com Score software previously installed and deleted from the computer.
13.

To the best of my knowledge, only an inspection of the subject computer would

allow comScore to review and collect the registry keys and MAC addresses.
14.

I hereby declare under the penalty of perjury that all statements made herein are

true and correct.

Executed this

t.I-M

_1_ of May, 2012.
Chief Technology Officer, comScore, Inc.

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