Hacker Got Personal Info, Potentially Credit Card Numbers, of 77 Million Playstation Users
- Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:17pm by
Emily Esfahani Smith
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According to the Wall Street Journal, Sony has taken down its online Playstation Network service after a hacker accessed the personal information—and possibly credit card numbers—of 77 million Playstation users.
In a blog post, the company said, “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.”
The Wall Street Journal reports:
The Japanese electronics giant said it has informed PlayStation Network customers that personal information—including names, addresses, billing history and birthdays—was obtained by an “unauthorized person” following a hacking attack that caused Sony to shut down its Internet gaming service last week. Sony said customer credit-card numbers may also have been compromised.
The Japanese game maker said it has hired a security firm to conduct an investigation into what happened. In the mean time, Sony said it expects to restore its Internet gaming service within a week.
Read more.
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Comments (98)
hogtrashhd
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:29pmPSN will have been down 1 week tonight at 10:pm eastern time .. I know… I was trying to buy a game.. so I guess it’s gonna be longer than a week….if it goes past 10 tonight.. for some reason I‘m feeling like it’s gonna be a way longer wait..they say they’re rebuilding the entire system.. more than a week I’m thinking…
Report Post »BarryShouldbeinJail
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:28pmIt’s been 7 days now, I guess I needed a small break from Black Ops anyways.
Silent_Rogue_23
Report Post »NC
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:20pmYou need a credit card to play PS3 or XBOX?
I’m going to climb back under my rock now…
NC (catching up after being in the mountains, camping and riding for 4 days)
Report Post »southernORcobra
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:15pmwith my past experiences with Sony this does not suprise me that the network they used got hacked.
Report Post »Lee Butchee
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:08pmYeesh! No POS3 for me. Only X-Box. How long have POS’s servers been out now anyway? I’ve been reading it for weeks now seemingly. *roll eyes*
Report Post »Huguenot Descendant
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:37pm4 days. At least it’s not as bad as that RRoD problem going around.
Report Post »OLDBIKEFIXER
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:07pmHey… he got the info from PLAYSTATION accounts. Anyone old enough to have a credit card has probably sold their video games a while back. And if anyone old enough to have a credit card actually is still playing video games, well, then all I can say is GROW UP AND GET A LIFE!
Report Post »BHAMCONSERVATIVE
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 7:35pmGrow Up and get a life? This coming from someone with a Mickey Mouse avatar? To each his own I guess. lol
Report Post »VENTVSBEATVS
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 7:55pmHmm, where have I heard this before?
Anyone who uses electricity and other modern conveniences is a Slothful Heathen!
Report Post »Anyone who watches motion pictures is on the Devil’s path to Hell!
Anyone who listens Rock ‘N Roll is an immature delinquent!
Anyone who reads comic books are closeted perverts and moral murderers!
(And history keeps repeating itself…)
VRW Conspirator
Posted on April 27, 2011 at 11:28ami have played video games since they came out….back to Pong…
my older step sons and i have played all the big name games on all the systems…we did it as male family bonding…even my 8 year old has been playing with his older brothers and myself since he was 4….
now because of it…he thinks the US Navy SEALs are the best thing on the planet and has been saying for 4 years that he wants to become a SEAL…i am encouraging him to that end..
see…video games can be positive…
Report Post »TeaPartyPatriot
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:04pm“Hacker Got Personal Info, Potentially Credit Card Numbers, of 77 Million Playstation Users”
That’s KARMA for those who waste their lives and time playing this idiot box instead of doing something useful.
Report Post »Huguenot Descendant
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:36pmI own a PS3 and play games on it but do it sparingly. I find time to work, do research on politics, and go to Tea Party events as well as work out at my local gym. So while I may use the system to get away from the turmoil of the world it is the same as watching a movie once in a while.
Report Post »BHAMCONSERVATIVE
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 7:33pmWhile I disagree with your statements here sir, I’ll defend to the grave your right to make them!
Report Post »Firebrand
Posted on April 27, 2011 at 1:18am@bham
Report Post »=o) … well played sir, well played.
trooper
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:01pmThey sound like useless idiots anyway so why should anyone care whatsoever?
Report Post »islandlady
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:00pmWI arent worried!!!! snicker snicker
Report Post »BarryShouldbeinJail
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:54pmI have been a week now without Black Ops, and it is killing me! We have both (Xbox & PS3) and there is no doubt in my mind that PS3 is the better game system, that being said, come on playstation, let’s get those servers back online!!!!!
Silent_Rogue_23
Report Post »ForgivenWretch
Posted on April 28, 2011 at 10:51amHope to see you online soon!
Report Post »theonefromabove
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:42pmThank god I got rid of my PS3.
http://politicalbowl.com – Political Videos
Report Post »NapalmSticksToKids
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:38pmWhat’s the difference, once ObamaCare is fully implemented your medical records will be “accidentally” published online.
Report Post »Zer0
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:00pm@Napalm,
Lulz…..love your monicker!!!! XD
Report Post »cheezwhiz
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:38pmdemint.disciple
Report Post »OFF topic I’m watching now on T.V .does anyone get the feeling that Glenn doesn’t think people can walk and chew gum at the same time ? Glenn is starting to bug out, man.
—————–
You mean the Trump-rant he did a few minutes ago ?
I was really surprised too, not when he ranted about Trump
but when he started questioning the DHS and State Dept
and wondered WHY this administration is doing what it is doing .
Hey Glenn, if Trump exposes Hussain and everything he is hiding , we will know the answer to that WHY you just asked .
demint.disciple
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:59pmYeah cheez thats what I was talking about .. Not his mental state like some idiot thinks I was talking about.. you know like they don’t even have a clue what mean of “ bug out” means…As if I was talking about Glenn’s mental status, although I do question slaptheleft’s
Report Post »mrmikejohnson
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:36pmComputerizing medical records sounds like a worse and worse idea every day, doesn’t it?
I know a woman training right now in the government-funded program to provide security for government health care records. Her computer skills are minimal and she’s a part-time drug dealer. These are the people in charge of securing your health care records.
Report Post »SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:39pmSounds like she’ll make a fine addition to a public sector union, maybe SEIU.
Report Post »savagenation707
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:34pmglad i used a gift card
Report Post »SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:31pmAnd BTW, that may have been my CC number that was hacked along with 77mil others. so there is reason to “bug out”. Good thing I got lifelock!!!!!!!
Report Post »SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:30pmBug out? Whats your point?
I’m bugged out and pissed off. Theres plenty to worry about. Every time you turn around these braniac leftists come up with some new off the wall BS and we cant seem to stop it. Man, I am tired of hearing people disparage Glenn for what he does. no offense to you, sir, but when you start to stand up against the likes of soros and this communist machine and walk around with bodyguards 24/7 then I might just agree that Glenn is “bugging out.”
Put your family’s safety on the line like Glenn has along with your fortune before making comments on someones mental or physical status.
Report Post »demint.disciple
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:53pmPipe down idiot..It‘s obvious you don’t have a clue what I am talking about.. I bet you’re not even watching the show right now.. Call Glenn directly if you’re looking for a job as his body guard…
Report Post »@ cheezwhiz… Yes exactly.. I know you know what I‘m talking about because you’re watching…
Some people feel the need to protect Glenn like he’s their God…
Funny how the blaze wiped my post.. WOW !! freedom of speech huh ? or is it the moron slaptheleft reported my post.. yeah thats what it is.. Glenns protector.
RockstarRepublic
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:30pmThey really shouldnt have angered the hacker community by going after George Hotz. All it did was inflame a large group of people who can do some serious damage if pushed far enough.
Sony probably regrets its stupidity and tactics used during the George Hotz case.
Report Post »SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:37pmNot sure who george hotz is, but Ive always wondered why hackers dont just use thier abilities to improve or create. Instead they still innocent peoples info like common criminals. come on guys!
Report Post »SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:38pmsteal sorry.
RockstarRepublic
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:26pmOh hackers do create and improve, they are constantly doing so. Many of the features developers/manufacturers end up putting in new products are often taken from the innovation of hackers and modders of hardware/software.
Furthermore, many hackers continue to contribute to the internet freedoms and rights movement, as well as continue to inform companies of any loop holes in their security.
The image that hackers are evil and or bad people is merely a myth. There are good ones and bad ones, but over all its a good scene.
George Hotz was the young hacker who hacked and paved the way for the iphone to be legally rooted. It effected the cell phone market in a great manner. Sony recently tried some very nasty bully tactics against him when he hacked the Playstation 3 so that modders could put Linux back on the system (which sony removed earlier, despite advertising it as a linux compatible system). Sony literally tried to ruin his life while they continued to ruin their public image.
It is also no wonder many inside sony are calling for its non japanese CEO Howard Stringer to step down.
Report Post »Aikes
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:27pmIt would be interesting if the person behind this was doing it in retaliation of Sony’s attacks on hacker George Hotz. Hotz is an incredibly brilliant mind and has embarrassed Sony, so they went after him. Because of the truly unbalanced nature of Sony’s retaliation toward Hotz, this could be related to that incident, but it could just as easily be just one more major breech funded by the Chinese. They have stolen more currency via the internet through gaming outlets than all other nations, entities, and persons combined. No one goes after China though because China does whatever it wants to and tells the world to turn a blind eye or they won’t allow their communist governed near slave labor to be utilized for the national corporate industries. We can’t have that now can we? The communists are making fools of the world’s free peoples and no one seems to care.
Report Post »seigelforensic
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:29pmEver heard of the video game crash of 1983? Destroyed the entire industry. It took years to recover. The only reason it was able to pull out of that slump was because Nintendo released the NES with very very strict controls on their intellectual property. Even then, merchants were reluctant to carry it.
This is a pretty good reason to try to keep control over what people do with your hardware. But as always, history will need to repeat itself so that all you kids can wake up.
Report Post »RockstarRepublic
Posted on April 27, 2011 at 2:29am@SEIGELFORENSIC,
That is untrue. The crash was due to lazy developers making broken products and horribly bug ridden games. There was no quality control at the time and people stopped buying home consoles, writing them off as a phad. I mean why bother when you could go to the local Arcade and play some pacman instead.
Nintendo was the company originally owning playing cards, sex hotels and gambling dens, in addition to a taxi service and dried ramen. Pretty much they were not a very reputable company, but they were very strict and self serving. Jump Man, which was the original mario, was just an idea ripped from previously popular arcade hits such as Pac Man among others. Miyamoto did a good job at designing good games, but it was more of an arcade thing which was finally brought to the home in a much more reliable package than what the older competition was providing.
Report Post »VRW Conspirator
Posted on April 27, 2011 at 10:41amokay…
here is where we need to educate and describe the differences between the groups…
phreakers – use technology to deliberately deceive/steal/exploit the SYSYEM…getting free phone calls/charging long distance to someone else, steal CC numbers or other personal date for ID theft, free internet, making ATM’s spit out more than you told it too..low/mid/and high level criminal behavior..
crackers – use technology to “crack” software and hardware to make it do things not originally intended or so the software/DVD/Blue Ray can be duplicated and distributed – largely intellectual and copyright infringement – largely illegal behavior done from the point of view that Open Source is the essence of equality… a way to fight the SYSTEM
hackers – term used to describe someone that breaksdown/through or evades security protocols on a large scale. Hackers have been around for as long as there have been computers. And as stated, they are in large the driving force BEHIND new security measures and software and hardware. They are not doing something with malice, even though what they are doing is technically illegal. They are doing it to prove that the claims by developers and manufacturers of being “SECURE” really are false claims made simply to line their pockets with money. Many hackers also just do it because they are challenged by the SYSTEM, like what Anonymous claims were their motives with Sony. Pure-true Hackers are not in it for gain of any type other than being known as the guy/girl/Crew that took down a certain system or software or hardware or company. Most of these guys go on to eventually work on the opposite side of the line for the companies they once hacked. It is why the US AirForce has the BEST counter-hacking division in the world, they recruit from the best known hackers in the United States and actually at times use the threat of criminal prosecution to get the guys to enlist and work for them. Ain’t blackmail great? LOL
personal note…not to hard to figure which group i identify most with… =) but then again…i crossed over to the DARK SIDE about 12 years ago…
Report Post »banjarmon
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:30pmIf some one stole my identity it might improve it…not saying they should, but it just might make it better.
Report Post »markgl
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:30pmI’m seriously pissed right now.
Report Post »SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:34pmwe will have to switch to PO’d.
Report Post »Mil-Dot
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:55pmMan I wish the Blaze would knock off the censorship crap and let people say what they wish, and how they wish to say it. Fricking asterisks. Great.
Report Post »What Would Jesus Vote
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:28pmX-box is probably next. It’s not like microsoft products are immune to security holes.
Report Post »SLAPTHELEFT
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:36pmBetsy, really?
Zer0
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:59pm@WWJV,
Xbox (aka Microsoft) wouldn’t even know if it happened at all to their servers. Microsoft has essentially just rolled over for the hackers/thieves and just writes up the losses of their pirated games. SONY made the mistake of actually standing up to the hackers and protecting their private, intellectual, property. Now, it is open season on SONY (and their customers) by every two bit thief, hacker, and Anonymous.
Report Post »copatriots
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:23pmHey Slap,
I am relatively new at this commenting stuff. If you have read my posts on other articles today, you will already know that I am a Pro-Life Christian. I freely acknowledge that I am not aware of WWJVOTE’s previous posts and you may know more than I do about him/her (guessing him but remains to be seen). However, VOTE apparently thinks that Christians are full of hate. He is on this site for one of two reasons:
1) to be intentionally antagonistic or
2) he is truly seeking people of truth and character
Stand with me in giving him the benefit of the doubt as we try to love him through the reason he shows up at a very conservative website. Kind regards!
Report Post »jcannon98188
Posted on April 27, 2011 at 4:03am@WWJVote
Microsoft does not have to worry. They did not piss off the group responsible for this. It is not some hacker looking for money. It is the hacker group Annonymous, who has declared all out war against Sony for a number of reasons. One is for lying to their customers about features on their system (IE OtherOS which was promised, stated as a selling point, and then later removed.) Two is for attempting to prosecute someone who jailbroke their system (Which is perfectly legal, the US Courts have already said this) and in doing so gained the IP address of EVERY one who looked at a website that tought you how to modify your system.
Sony commited a major invasion of privacy, as well as lied in the selling of their product. In response to this Anonymous has declared war. These guys are actually pretty decent, they won‘t eff with the CC’s. That would make them lose respect. This was a flex of power, telling Sony who is really in charge here.
Report Post »aerokossa
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:28pmthats what prepaid credit cards are for. cant steal money thats not there. screw the xbox. i much rather my PS3. Sucks for those people who put their real credit cards online.
Report Post »Huguenot Descendant
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:27pmHa, lucky thing I don’t ever use my credit card on PSN.
Report Post »demint.disciple
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:55pmGlenn does’t think we can walk and chew gum at the same time.. He’s starting to bug out..
Report Post »NapalmSticksToKids
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:24pmSony & Naughty Dog ought to send Nathan Drake out to find the hacker and take him out at close range with the Dessert-5.
Report Post »Huguenot Descendant
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:31pmOr the RPG which would = Epic PWNG!
Report Post »OLDBIKEFIXER
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:11pmNapalm… I read your name and spit beer all over the screen & keyboard! Love it! Why couldn’t I have thought of that?
Report Post »NapalmSticksToKids
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:32pmI stole my login name from the late-80′s thrash metal band “Napalm” that had t-shirts w/ glowing goop stuck to a stick figure kid w/ the headline “Napalm sticks to kids”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv0RNRrNHu0
Report Post »mrsmileyface
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:22pmThis story made me chuckle. X-box 4eva.
Report Post »Huguenot Descendant
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:29pmXbox nah. Does Xbox have games like Uncharted or Metal Gear Solid 4? I don’t think so.
Report Post »mrsmileyface
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 5:38pmlol
Report Post »Ballgame
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:00pmxbox sucks!
Report Post »ISeeDanger.com
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:00pmFunny how the “user’s name” was POTUS
Report Post »http://www.ISeeDanger.com
theonefromabove
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:00pmThank god I got rid of my PS3.
http://politicalbowl.com – Political Videos
Report Post »SavingtheRepublic.com
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:01pmgo ahead with my info its useless no thanks to what has happened in the country
Report Post »3
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:01pmI really like this page, but besides the Lib hack that come on here We all think the same thing so I don’t have anything else to say but please Pray extra hard and more because God can hear You/Us and without Him we are nothing. It’s not over yet. We still have time. PRAY!
Report Post »1TrueOne55
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:16pmYou can gloat now but guess what your X-box is as hackable as a Windows PC since it has the Win 2K core code making it work. The only thing it does not have is an internet browser and when that happens you can bet that hackers will treat like all other Microsoft Software products, fair and easy game for hacking, especially since M$ has given the security features to the KGB in Russia and the Chinese Army in China. Ever wonder why Google was hacked so easily in China??? Makes for good rumor fodder.
Report Post »Huguenot Descendant
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:20pm@3
Of course this is all in good fun. There are other important things to worry about in the world but once in a while it’s nice to have a break from the politics.
Report Post »Showtime
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:28pmI’m safe. No credit cvard, no debt, no play station.
Report Post »Showtime
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:30pm@3 ~
Report Post »We have been praying; we are praying; and we shall continue to pray for our country, our Republic, our one nation under God.
cemerius
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 6:46pmWOW!! Finally an answer!! It’s actually been down for alomost two weeks already!!!
Report Post »Professional Infidel
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 8:19pmwhats an X box??
Report Post »vichoff
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 8:31pmChuckle is not what I would do in this day and age. If you think xbox could survive what Anonymous is capable of you are wrong…they are cyber terrorist and they can target anyone. The xbox / PS3 debate…..uhhhh why the need buddy….I for one am glad there is competition…makes both boxes better…
Report Post »jbl8199
Posted on April 26, 2011 at 9:36pmAt least we PS3 users don’t have to pay extra for our internet.
Report Post »jcannon98188
Posted on April 27, 2011 at 3:58am@jbl8199
Uhhh who will be paying when Annonymous starts using your CC info? Exactly. (Just kidding though, why fight over Xbox360 and PS3. They are both great, and I love both of them).
@The Story
Honestly, this is partly Sony’s fault. It is easy to blame the guys at Anon for this, but this is the second story that Sony has produced as to why the PSN is currently down. First hackers took it down, now they took it down to protect from hackers. It does not add up. They picked a fight with the wrong group, and now is realizing how lax their security was. You cannot stop Annonymous, so fighting them in the first place is a huge mistake.
Honestly, I support Anonymous. They are a fairly libertarian organization that is fighting for freedom of speach, information, and press. Their methods are fairly iffy, but it is the platform that works best for them. Keep your hands off of the internet, and anon won’t be so angry.
Report Post »skinnydipinacid
Posted on April 27, 2011 at 10:51amWell, I kinda figured something like this would happen, especially after they pulled the ability to access other operating systems (one of the key selling points that led to me buying a PS3 in the first place, eliminating the option to access it via a simple (yet mandatory) update.
Hey Sony…. let the lesson be learned: IT’S NOT SMART TO PISS OFF PEOPLE WHO USE LINUX
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