This thread was originally about PSN being hacked in 2011, but we thought it fitting to make it a general "Oh Sony" thread to contain rants or news about Sony's war on hackers (and hackers' war on Sony).

The original OP is below.


Update 5/31/11: PSN to be back by Friday

IGN said:

Sony said today it will fully restore PlayStation Network and Qriocity services in the Americas, Europe/PAL territories and Asia - excluding Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea - by the end of this week. Service updates for Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea will be available at a later date.

Full restoration for PSN includes:

- Full functionality on PlayStation Store

- In-game commerce

- Ability to redeem vouchers and codes

- Full functionality on Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for PS3, PSP, VAIO and other PCs

- Full functionality on Media Go
"We have been conducting additional testing and further security verification of our commerce functions in order to bring the PlayStation Network completely back online so that our fans can again enjoy the first class entertainment experience they have come to love," said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation. "We appreciate the patience and support shown during this time."

End 5/31/11 Update.

Kotaku said:

A security breach in the Playstation Network by still unidentified hackers resulted in stolen personal information, Sony confirmed today.

Sony says while personal information was likely stolen they don't believe credit card numbers were and that they hope to have the Playstation Network service back up within a week.

The news comes more than nine days after the intrusion and six days after Sony shut down both the Playstation Network and Qriocity services in reaction to the breach. Sony says they've hired a "recognized security firm" to conduct a complete investigation into what happened and have taken steps to enhance security and strengthen network infrastructure.
"We have discovered that between April 17 and April 19, 2011, certain PlayStation Network and Qriocity service user account information was compromised in connection with an illegal and unauthorized intrusion into our network," Patrick Seybold, senior director of corporate communications for Sony Computer Entertainment of America, wrote on the official Playstation Blog today.

Among the possible information stolen:

Name
Address (city, state, zip)
Country
Email address
Birthdate
PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login and handle/PSN online ID.
"While there is no evidence at this time that credit card data was taken," writes Seybold, "we cannot rule out the possibility."

"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," Seybold continues.

Sony is encouraging users to be especially aware of potential phishing scams from people using email, phone calls and mail to try and extract more personal or sensitive information from you. Sony also is strongly recommending that you change you password once you're able to log back into the Playstation Network.

"To protect against possible identity theft or other financial loss, we encourage you to remain vigilant, to review your account statements and to monitor your credit reports," Seybold wrote

"We thank you for your patience as we complete our investigation of this incident, and we regret any inconvenience. Our teams are working around the clock on this, and services will be restored as soon as possible. Sony takes information protection very seriously and will continue to work to ensure that additional measures are taken to protect personally identifiable information. Providing quality and secure entertainment services to our customers is our utmost priority. Please contact us at 1-800-345-7669 should you have any additional questions."

Sources
Kotaku

IGN

UPDATE
Sony is being sued.

IGN said:

A class action lawsuit was filed against Sony a day after the company publicly admitted that personal information from PlayStation Network was compromised by a security breach. The lawsuit was filed by the Rothken Law Firm today in a California court and alleges Sony "failed to take reasonable care to protect, encrypt, and secure the private and sensitive data."

Yesterday, Sony said it believes an unauthorized person obtained PSN user information, including members' names, addresses, birthdays, and login passwords. The company said there was no evidence that credit card information was stolen, but did not rule out that possibility.

"We brought this lawsuit on behalf of consumers to learn the full extent of Sony PlayStation Network data security practices and the data loss and to seek a remedy for consumers. We are hopeful that Sony will take this opportunity to learn from the network vulnerabilities, provide a remedy to consumers who entrusted their sensitive data to Sony, and lead the way in data security best practices going forward," said Ira P. Rothken an attorney who filed the class action complaint.

"Sony's breach of its customers' trust is staggering. Sony promised its customers that their information would be kept private. One would think that a large multinational corporation like Sony has strong protective measures in place to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of personal information, including credit card information. Apparently, Sony doesn't," commented J.R. Parker, co-counsel in the case.

The lawsuit seeks monetary compensation for the data loss and "loss of use of the Sony PlayStation Network, credit monitoring, and other relief according to proof."

IGN has contacted Sony for comment.

Maybe I'll get $5 bucks out of all of this. Yay me.

URL to share (right click and copy)

Thank God my debit card information never went through. Still, will call or go to Sovereign Bank within a few day just to check and be safe.

Well I'm glad I deleted the credit card info a while back and refused to keep it there when I can just use PSN cards. That and that credit card info expired a while back... still, it's scary that all this info was compromised. Millions of users are at risk now. Sony is gonna have a ton of shit to deal with :/

@sirmastersephiroth

It's not Anonymous, this doesn't fit their M.O.

Anonymous is a bunch of tools in their own right, they're just a bunch of twenty-somethings, and teens that think they're bigger and more imporatant than they really are, and think they're fucking V from V for Vendetta. They're rather pathetic, and they're so called "attacks" are laughable; "Oh no I got a bunch of pizzas sent to my house! Oh no they're causing a denial of service attack on my Website, that surely won't pass soon". I wouldn't want to trifle with them just so I can avoid the nuisance, but they're not some sort of superhero, or revolutionary movement leading the way for a better world, as they seem to think they are.

They're advocates for free-speech, which is why they backed Geohot, and attacked Sony, but stealing information from innocent people isn't what they would plan. Now like I said, that wouldn't really stop some members from seeing a vulnerability from the last attack, and using it for their own personal gain, but they're not acting on the group's behalf.

I wonder how long it will take Sony to actually e-mail me about my possibly stolen info.

The longer it takes, the harder they can go fuck themselves.

Oh wow. This scares me.

I am usually one to roll my eyes when my mom refuses to use her credit card online... Now here we are.
I haven't received an email from Sony personally, but I expect one. Gotta keep my eyes focused on my bank account.

Secret_Tunnel said:

Anonymous doesn't have anything to do with it.

We make this assumption because they made that statement, or do you know something else? Anyho looks like I will have to monitor my Credit Card now, not fun.

I'm not condoning the hackers' actions, but isn't this what Sony was asking for? Horrible outcome for everyone, and most notably the paying customer.

@anon_mastermind

What do you mean, they were asking for it?

Dear anonymous,

Go to hell

~nate38

@Secret_Tunnel

Even if they didn't do anything, they're in pretty good position to be the leading suspect, or an accidental accessory.

They've shown the weaknesses that the system had, and they (or someone else) exploited it.

--I just read that link you provided, and it makes those guys look like bigger d-bags.
I don't like Sony at all, and even I wouldn't say that stuff. Whats wrong with them?

Seriously, they aren't offering any kind of credit card protection service for this? Old Navy did for me when one of their higher-up's laptops was stolen...OLD NAVY! Get on the ball, Sony!

Secret_Tunnel said:

Anonymous doesn't have anything to do with it.

Yeah, they just opened the door for someone else to. They gave them the map, they handed over the keys. And then they have the audacity to wash their hands of any liability.

Douche bags.

Secret_Tunnel said:

Anonymous doesn't have anything to do with it.

Anonymous is anyone who hacks and considers themselves anonymous. They have no official leader.

They very likely did have something to do with it, though that's just my opinion and we'll pry never know.

@New Forms

Seriously?

How could their denial-of-service attack help these hackers? So they soaked up all the bandwith for PSN for part of a day and this is handing over the keys?

The hacker or group of hackers responsible maybe looked at PSN because of the high profile Anonymous made of it, but the Anonymous attack has nothing to do with this. Now I'm not saying that maybe some of their group couldn't be doing this, but it could also be kids in China, India, or the U.S. I think the hacker/s that did this can hang for all I care, but somehow Sony left a gaping hole in their security which is inexcusable for a Corporation handling that much personal data. I'd be upset at both the hackers and Sony if I were a customer on PSN. I'm not a customer, but I feel bad for the users that this effects, not Sony.

@Guillaume

Good point.

Sony, you guys are such a joke this generation.

@Guillaume
What with all the trouble they gave Geohot and denying the homebrewers/Linux users. Sorry, I'm not really educated on the subject but I always had the impression that Sony pissed off this vocal minority of tech-savvy users.

This is so ridiculous... when it happens to some website, whatever. I get it. But a multi-billion dollar corporation? And they weren't even encrypting our information? Get your shit together.

And I don't even know what password I used when I signed up for PSN, nor can I log-on to check.

poor sony, they are getting it from all directions and new nintendo console to be announced at e3.