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

[star_deceiver]

http://arstechnica.com/gaming/...n.arsh ... acked/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.Complete PSN hack coverage:PSN down due to "external intrusion," no news on fix, credit card securityPSN update: Sony isn't sure your credit card data is safeSony admits utter PSN failure: your personal data has been stolenPlayStation Network hacked, data stolen: how badly is Sony hurt?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 http://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 http://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 http://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.

[keithvibe]

how does one change the password without logging in to the PS network?I have never bought anything via the network, but I do use netflix threw the network which now has my credit card info...

[808 Vibes]

Just to be safe, anyone that might have been compromised, might want to do the Credit Fraud Alert. http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=37844I do this every 3 months (it's good for 90 days) because of my case.

[Salsa Guy]

I'm happy to say I don't have a PSN account. My brother-in-law does audits for network security. There's one thing about stealing information vs stealing a car. You can only sell the car once, you can sell information 100s of times. Be Secure My Friend

[blindman10]

I'm so unhappy with Sony right now. Not only has the network been down for well over a week, I'm now hearing that my private information may have been compromised and sold to the highest bidder/any bidder.

[keithvibe]

received this email over night from playstationQuote »Valued PlayStation(R)Network/Qriocity Customer: 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. In response to this intrusion, we have: 1) Temporarily turned off PlayStation Network and Qriocity services; 2) Engaged an outside, recognized security firm to conduct a full and complete investigation into what happened; and 3) Quickly taken steps to enhance security and strengthen our network infrastructure by rebuilding our system to provide you with greater protection of your personal information. We greatly appreciate your patience, understanding and goodwill as we do whatever it takes to resolve these issues as quickly and efficiently as practicable. Although we are still investigating the details of this incident, we believe that an unauthorized person has obtained the following information that you provided: name, address (city, state, zip), country, email address, birthdate, PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login, and handle/PSN online ID. 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. While there is no evidence at this time that credit card data was taken, 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. For your security, we encourage you to be especially aware of email, telephone and postal mail scams that ask for personal or sensitive information. 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. If you are asked for this information, you can be confident Sony is not the entity asking. When the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services are fully restored, we strongly recommend that you log on and change your password. Additionally, if you use your PlayStation Network or Qriocity user name or password for other unrelated services or accounts, we strongly recommend that you change them as well. 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. We are providing the following information for those who wish to consider it: - U.S. residents are entitled under U.S. law to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit bureaus. To order your free credit report, visit http://www.annualcreditreport.com or call toll-free (877) 322-8228. - We have also provided names and contact information for the three major U.S. credit bureaus below. At no charge, U.S. residents can have these credit bureaus place a "fraud alert" on your file that alerts creditors to take additional steps to verify your identity prior to granting credit in your name. This service can make it more difficult for someone to get credit in your name. Note, however, that because it tells creditors to follow certain procedures to protect you, it also may delay your ability to obtain credit while the agency verifies your identity. As soon as one credit bureau confirms your fraud alert, the others are notified to place fraud alerts on your file. Should you wish to place a fraud alert, or should you have any questions regarding your credit report, please contact any one of the agencies listed below: Experian: 888-397-3742; http://www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013Equifax: 800-525-6285; http://www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241TransUnion: 800-680-7289; http://www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790 - You may wish to visit the website of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission at http://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 http://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 http://www.oag.state.md.us. 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. Sincerely, Sony Computer Entertainment and Sony Network Entertainment

[northvibe]

if sony only listened to the hacker(s), all they wanted was otherOS

[djkeev]

It's a known risk of modern life.Want to be safe, use only cash, not even a check is safe!Retreat to the safety of the 1950's before credit was big and hibernate as a strange old man denying that the 21st century is here. Wait, even the 50's aren't safe, all banks use the internet so you need to stuff you cash in a mattress or bury it in the yard like a dog and a bone. Don't carry a cell phone, don't use EZ pass as well.Get off of you computer, turn off you internet connection and delete all of you online contacts and emails.Remember, there are CAMERA's EVERYWHERE watching YOU as well. So you might want to stay out of any major business or Government Building. Even the streets of cities are recording you.Good Luck to you! Maybe a plywood shack in the North Woods will be right up your alley??Stuff happens you can't control, you deal with it and move forward.Dave