sonyhackathon

Gaming
May 6, 2011
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Sony’s CEO apologizes for security breach, will offer free month of PSN service

By on May 6, 2011 at 9:52 AM.

Sony’s CEO apologizes for security breach, will offer free month of PSN service

Sony’s president, chairman, and CEO, Howard Stringer, has issued letter of apology to PlayStation Network, Qriocity, and other Sony users who have been affected by the firm’s massive security breach. “Let me assure you that the resources of this company have been focused on investigating the entire nature and impact of the cyber-attack we’ve all experienced and on fixing it,” Stringer said. “We are absolutely dedicated to restoring full and safe service as soon as possible and rewarding you for your patience. We will settle for nothing less.” A total of 101 million accounts across Sony’s network were compromised and 12.3 million credit card numbers were stolen by hackers. However, Stringer said that there’s currently no evidence that those numbers have been misused and that Sony has issued a $1 million identity theft insurance policy for U.S. PSN and Qriocity customers, with other regions to follow. Hit the jump for more from Stringer’s letter, including information on Sony’s “Welcome Back” package.

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Security
May 5, 2011
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‘Anonymous’ denies involvement in Sony cyberattacks

By on May 5, 2011 at 10:01 AM.

‘Anonymous’ denies involvement in Sony cyberattacks

In its response to a congressional inquiry over recent cyberattacks aimed at several of Sony’s online networks, the company on Wednesday claimed it possessed evidence of hacker activist group Anonymous’ involvement. Sony did state, however, that it could not be certain if Anonymous knowingly carried out Denial of Service attacks in order to facilitate the theft of customer data, or if the group was merely an unwitting pawn in a scheme carried out by more malicious attackers. Anonymous on Wednesday issued a press release denying any involvement with the theft of customer data, which included over 12.3 million credit card numbers. Anonymous does acknowledge that the breach took place while it was carrying out an attack on Sony’s servers, but says it did not not participate in any data theft. The group also claims it did not leave any files on Sony’s servers — Sony stated earlier that it discovered a file called “Anonymous” on its servers following the breaches that contained a portion of Anonymous’ slogan. Hit the break for the full press release. More →

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Gaming
May 4, 2011
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Sony responds to congressional inquiry over ‘highly sophisticated’ cyberattack

By on May 4, 2011 at 1:18 PM.

Sony responds to congressional inquiry over ‘highly sophisticated’ cyberattack

Sony on Wednesday responded to a congressional inquiry regarding major cyberattacks against its Qriocity, PlayStation Network, and Sony Online Entertainment businesses that leaked loads of personal information, including credit card numbers, to hackers. The hackers were able to breach Sony’s security while another group, dubbed “Anonymous” mobbed its servers with denial-of-service (DoS) attacks. “Whether those who participated in the denial of services attacks were conspirators or whether they were simply duped into providing cover for a very clever thief, we may never know,” Sony said in its letter to Congress, noting that it still has no idea who hacked its systems. A total of 101 million accounts across Sony’s multiple networks were compromised as Sony became the “victim of a very carefully planned, very professional, highly sophisticated criminal cyberattack designed to steal personal and credit card information for illegal purposes,” the company said. According to The Wall Street Journal, 12.3 million credit card numbers were stolen, 5.6 million of which belonged to users in the United States. So far Sony has not confirmed that the credit card numbers have been used illegally. The firm hopes to get its gaming networks back online as soon as possible. More →

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Security
May 3, 2011
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Sony confirms SOE security breach, 25 million accounts compromised

By on May 3, 2011 at 10:44 AM.

Sony confirms SOE security breach, 25 million accounts compromised

Following preliminary news of another major security breach, Sony confirmed late on Monday that its Sony Online Entertainment portal has been hacked and the personal data of its users has been compromised. Sony said the cyberattack took place on Sunday, and its online gaming portal was taken offline as an initial countermeasure. The company is currently working with the FBI to investigate the breach, which the company has confirmed may have exposed personal data associated with 25 million online accounts. Sony has also confirmed that 10,700 non-U.S. debit card numbers and 12,700 non-U.S. credit card numbers may have been stolen, though the company said its main credit card database was not compromised. Sony Online Entertainment, or SOE, is a portal that hosts several popular Massively Multiplayer Online PC games such as EverQuest and DC Universe Online. Hit the break for Sony’s letter to SOE users. More →

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Security
May 2, 2011
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Sony suffers another major security breach

By on May 2, 2011 at 4:23 PM.

Sony suffers another major security breach

Nikkei.com on Monday reported that an online Sony gaming network has once again fallen victim to a cyberattack. This time, the attack may have exposed the credit card numbers of thousands of Sony customers from around the world. According to the report, over 12,700 customer credit card numbers were stolen during a breach of Sony’s online gaming network, Sony Online Entertainment. According to Nikkei.com, Sony discovered the possible attack on Sunday. Sony recently suffered a similar attack on its PlayStation Network, which was offline for days as a result of the breach. Though Sony has yet to confirm this new incident publicly, the Sony Online Entertainment portal has been taken offline while Sony investigates the matter. More →

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