Sony admits utter PSN failure: your personal data has been stolen

[tallywacker]

Sony has finally come clean about the "external intrusion" that has caused the company to take down the PlayStation Network service, and the news is almost as bad as it can possibly get. The hackers have all your personal information, although Sony is still unsure about whether your credit card data is safe. Everything else on file when it comes to your account is in the hands of the hackers.

In other words, Sony's security has failed in a spectacular fashion, and we're just now finding out about it. In both practical and PR terms, this is a worst-case scenario.
What did they get?

Here is the data that Sony is sure has been compromised if you have a PlayStation Network Account:

* Your name
* Your address (city, state, and zip)
* Country
* E-mail address
* Birthday
* PSN password and login name

"It is also possible that your profile data, including purchase history and billing address (city, state, zip), and your PlayStation Network/Qriocity password security answers may have been obtained. If you have authorized a sub-account for your dependent, the same data with respect to your dependent may have been obtained," Sony announced. While the company claims that there is "no evidence" that credit card information has been compromised, it won't rule out the possibility.

Their advice is to be safe, rather than sorry. "If you have provided your credit card data through PlayStation Network or Qriocity, out of an abundance of caution we are advising you that your credit card number (excluding security code) and expiration date may have been obtained."
What can you do?

You are warned to keep watch over your accounts, and to be aware of your heightened risk of fraud due to the security breach. "For your security, we encourage you to be especially aware of e-mail, telephone, and postal mail scams that ask for personal or sensitive information," the company said. "Sony will not contact you in any way, including by email, asking for your credit card number, social security number or other personally identifiable information."

Sony has also provided a wealth of sources for data and protection against identity theft.

You may wish to visit the web site of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission at www.consumer.gov/idtheft or reach the FTC at 1-877-382-4357 or 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580 for further information about how to protect yourself from identity theft. Your state Attorney General may also have advice on preventing identity theft, and you should report instances of known or suspected identity theft to law enforcement, your State Attorney General, and the FTC. For North Carolina residents, the Attorney General can be contacted at 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-9001; telephone (877) 566-7226; or www.ncdoj.gov. For Maryland residents, the Attorney General can be contacted at 200 St. Paul Place, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202; telephone: (888) 743-0023; or www.oag.state.md.us.

To be fair, Sony does apologize for the inconvenience. There is still no update on when service will be restored, but that is the least of your concerns if you have a PlayStation Network account. It's time to change your passwords, at the very least, and if you're like to be completely safe it's not a bad idea to cancel your credit or debit cards and request replacements.

We'll continue to follow this story as it develops.

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/news/2...een-stolen.ars


Whoops

I guess "you get what you pay for" applies here

[Rangerscott]

I cant remember if I put my CC on my PS3. If so it's my old one any ways.

[dReWpY]

ok who dun it?

[Particle Man]

Aw fuck. I haven't used my PSN account in a while but I think I have some stuff out there.

[Avatard]

Nice!!!!!

Add this to the rootkit debacle, and I think it's time to have a nice congressional pow wow about Sony! Yay!

Maybe they can group it in with grilling Apple over watching everyone's every fucking move.

[shmike]

Originally Posted by Avatard

Nice!!!!!

Add this to the rootkit debacle, and I think it's time to have a nice congressional pow wow about Sony! Yay!

Maybe they can group it in with grilling Apple over watching everyone's every fucking move.

Sorry to keep dragging this up...

My understanding is that Apple is NOT watching your every move, Apple products are.

If I own and possess said product, the only person that has access to those recordings is me.

Is that accurate?

[tallywacker]

Originally Posted by shmike

Sorry to keep dragging this up...

My understanding is that Apple is NOT watching your every move, Apple products are.

If I own and possess said product, the only person that has access to those recordings is me.

Is that accurate?

Apple products are watching you = Apple is watching you

[Particle Man]

Originally Posted by tallywacker

Apple products are watching you = Apple is watching you

This.

They've pretty much said that anything Apple still belongs to Apple even if you bought it.

[shmike]

Originally Posted by Particle Man

They've pretty much said that anything Apple still belongs to Apple even if you bought it.

Ok, now we are getting somewhere.

Thanks, I didn't know that.

Where have they / do they say that?

[Apoc]

Originally Posted by Particle Man

This.

They've pretty much said that anything Apple still belongs to Apple even if you bought it.

Ummm, no... Apple lost and was humiliated by the judge when he delivered his verdict. Jailbreaking is perfect legal. You need to read up on what actually happened.

Aside from software, which is of course protected by piracy laws.