Error Code (aka The Great PSN Easter Outage of 2011)

[Kryptonian Warrior]

The meter that'll indicate when it's online is a forum?

Yeah, I didn't really pay attention to all the stuff going on at the top of the page. I just saw a counter that showed how long it had been offline, then I scrolled down. Thus the forum look. My bad.

 

[The Squirrel]

What's even worse than the PSN being down is having to listen to all the X-Box frat boys because of it. Which doesn't really help win me over to getting an X-Box.

 

[Sam Fisher]

What's even worse than the PSN being down is having to listen to all the X-Box frat boys because of it. Which doesn't really help win me over to getting an X-Box.

Which is funny since XBL was also hacked a few years ago.

 

[Kryptonian Warrior]

Which is funny since XBL was also hacked a few years ago.

Oh how easily they forget.

 

[MoPlaYa]

How long was XBL down when it was hacked a few years back?

 

[Donut]

At least no Credit Card information & account passwords / addresses were stolen. In the case of the XBL Hacking / Downtime all they did was shut it down. It did happen to XBL but not as bad as its been for Sony where they ended up taking down every single online system. It sucks when it happens to anyone but XBL was not as bad as Sony turn

 

[Sam Fisher]

When is E3 BTW?

 

[Electro UK]

June 7 - 9 though Ms and Sony are having their conferences on June 6.

 

[kal-el1990]

Just thought I'd post this...

I just received a phone call from my banks fraud department saying someone has been attempting to use my account to pay for things. I am a member of PSN but I don't think it has anything to do with it.

Has anyone else had anything similar? Have they even confirmed CC data has been stolen?

Like I said it's probably unrelated but I thought I'd inform you all just in case!!

 

[KALEL114]

How long was XBL down when it was hacked a few years back?

If you are talking about 2007, it wasn't down due to a hack. It was down due to the influx of Live accounts and Halo 3 at Christmas. The system just couldn't handle the stress. The service was not completely down for the whole 2 weeks for everyone, but it was sporadic for everyone (ie. signing you out during a match).

 

[Cth]

How long was XBL down when it was hacked a few years back?

I'm pretty sure that's incorrect.

From what I remember, it was due to 3 major games being released back to back over the holidays and Microsoft wasn't prepared for it. There were sporadic outages that didn't affect everyone at once.

Completely different issues altogether.

Also, according to Wikipedia (not the best source admittedly), it lasted 13 days.

 

[Alex The Great]

That is your fault for only owning one console. This type of situation shows why its good to own both

Well sadly, not all of us can mooch money from our Daddies.

 

[Benstamania]

If you are talking about 2007, it wasn't down due to a hack. It was down due to the influx of Live accounts and Halo 3 at Christmas. The system just couldn't handle the stress. The service was not completely down for the whole 2 weeks for everyone, but it was sporadic for everyone (ie. signing you out during a match).

Yup, I remember that. I would be able to get on then a few minuets later kicked off. It was fixed rather quick though.

I mean, lets not start pointing fingers... Any company can, will and probably has been hacked, there have probably been hacks that we don't even, nor will we ever know about. The bottom line is Sony was hit REALLY hard and this hack showed some major flaws that they had.

It's both good and bad for Sony... Bad in the obvious way, good in the fact that PSN will probably be a stronger setup once it's back online.

Also, is anyone else getting tired of GeoHot running his mouth? GameInformer.com has several "interviews" with him where he was calling Sony arrogant, blah, blah,blah. Hey kettle... Meet pot.

If it wasn't for that *****er putting the source code public then we wouldn't be here right now. I could careless if someone wants to hack their stuff in their own home but GeoHot obviously wanted the "fame" that came with this hack.

He says he has absolutely nothing to do with this current hack, but I don't know how much I believe that, to be honest...

 

[Donut]

Well sadly, not all of us can mooch money from our Daddies.

Wow that's very original. Good one

 

[KALEL114]

Today, the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing in Washington, DC on “The Threat of Data Theft to American Consumers.”
Kazuo Hirai, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sony Computer Entertainment America, submitted written answers to questions posed by the subcommittee about the large-scale, criminal cyber-attack we have experienced. We wanted to share those answers with you (click here).
In summary, we told the subcommittee that in dealing with this cyber attack we followed four key principles:

1. Act with care and caution.
2. Provide relevant information to the public when it has been verified.
3. Take responsibility for our obligations to our customers.
4. Work with law enforcement authorities.

We also informed the subcommittee of the following:

• Sony has been the victim of a very carefully planned, very professional, highly sophisticated criminal cyber attack.
• We discovered that the intruders had planted a file on one of our Sony Online Entertainment servers named “Anonymous” with the words “We are Legion.”
• By April 25, forensic teams were able to confirm the scope of the personal data they believed had been taken, and could not rule out whether credit card information had been accessed. On April 26, we notified customers of those facts.
• As of today, the major credit card companies have not reported any fraudulent transactions that they believe are the direct result of this cyber attack.
• Protecting individuals’ personal data is the highestpriority and ensuring that the Internet can be made secure for commerce is also essential. Worldwide, countries and businesses will have to come together to ensure the safety of commerce over the Internet and find ways to combat cybercrime and cyber terrorism.
• We are taking a number of steps to prevent future breaches, including enhanced levels of data protection and encryption; enhanced ability to detect software intrusions, unauthorized access and unusual activity patterns; additional firewalls; establishment of a new data center in an undisclosed location with increased security; and the naming of a new Chief Information Security Officer.

We told the subcommittee about our intent to offer complimentary identity theft protection to U.S. account holders and detailed the “Welcome Back” program that includes free downloads, 30 days of free membership in the
PlayStation Plus premium subscription service; 30 days of free service for Music Unlimited subscribers; and extending PlayStation Plus and Music Unlimited subscriptions for the number of days services were unavailable.
We are working around the clock to have some PlayStation Network services restored and we’ll be providing specific details shortly. We hope this update is helpful to you, and we will continue to keep you posted as we work to restore our network and provide you with both the entertainment and the security you deserve.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/05/04/sonys-response-to-the-u-s-house-of-representatives/

Surprise, surprise.

 

[Benstamania]

So much for Anonymous not being "involved" with this...

 

[Donut]

Taina Rodriguez, a Sony Online Entertainment spokeswoman confirmed that SOE servers won’t be back online until Friday or longer


http://www.gamersmint.com/soe-servers-to-remain-offline-till-friday-or-longer


We are getting into Week 3 of the Playstation Network being offline

 

[ProjectPat2280]

I find it funny that even with the PSn being down, iv actually been playing my PS3 more, but thats just because iv decided to play through God of War III again.


Also, here's a timeline of what went down, this is all from Sony's letter to congress:

April 19, 2011. 4:15PM PDT – Sony Network Entertainment America (SNEA) network team detects unauthorized activity in the network of 130 servers. Specifically, machines were "rebooting when not scheduled to do so." Analysis begins.

April 20, 2011. Early Afternoon – SNEA engineers discover evidence of "unauthorized intrusion" and that data had been removed from PlayStation Network servers. PlayStation Network shut down by engineers, taking 77 million registered PlayStation Network and Qriocity accounts offline. Sony retains service of computer security and forensic consulting firm.

April 21, 2011 – Sony retains services of second computer security and forensic consulting firm.

April 22, 2011 – Nine of ten compromised servers are mirrored by Sony and security firms. Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) general counsel provides FBI with information about the intrusion. A meeting with the FBI is scheduled for Wednesday, April 27th, 2011. Sony acknowledges on their blog that their system had an "external intrusion", but mentions nothing about the loss of data and issues no warning to customers

April 23, 2011. Afternoon – Forensic teams confirm that intruders used "very sophisticated and aggressive techniques to obtain unauthorized access, hide their presence from system administrators, and escalate privileges inside the server."

April 24, 2011. Easter Sunday – Sony retains additional forensic team with "highly specialized skills" to "determine the scope of the data theft".

April 25, 2011 – Teams confirm account details compromised, including name, address, country, email, birthdate, PlayStation Network/Qriocity password, login, handle and network ID, but remain unsure if any of the 12.3 million global credit cards stored on the servers were compromised.

April 26, 2011 – Sony Network Entertainment and Sony Computer Entertainment America provide public notice of the intrusion and alert regulatory authorities in New Jersey, Maryland, and New Hampshire.

April 27, 2011 – SCEA alert regulatory authorities in Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Puerto Rico.

May 3rd, 2011 – Sony Chairman Kaz Hirai sends letter to Congressional Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade explaining details of intrusion.

 

[ProjectPat2280]

Also thought the image in this article was pretty funny:

These are the people hired to hunt the PSn hackers.

 

[KALEL114]

Lol, that is awesome. It is really fitting, because of what today is.

 

[Benstamania]

Also thought the image in this article was pretty funny:

These are the people hired to hunt the PSn hackers.

Sony: We want the hackers alive.. NO disintegrations... Well, maybe that GeoHot guy... but only because he's a little *****er.

Boba Fett: As you wish.

 

[Tron Bonne]

And then Boba Fett will fall in a hole and die

 

[Benstamania]

Then crawl out of it and blow it up. Wooord.

 

[Tron Bonne]

No, just die. That's it.

 

[Benstamania]

Lucas himself said that he "doesn't want to go against fans" on Fetts "death." Don't be such a hater.