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back to article PlayStation Network blasted offline AGAIN. Just not Sony's decade

Sony's PlayStation Network has suffered yet another outage: the PlayStation store went titsup in the early hours of Monday, UK time. Hacktivist group the Lizard Squad claimed responsibility for flooding the servers off the internet using a distributed denial-of-service attack. The PlayStation giant said on its Twitter account …

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  1. Khaptain Silver badge

    The Lizard Squad

    I think if I was hacking a multi-nationale, who have huge spending power, I would be a little bit more reticent in announcing my name.

    Sony do actually have the means to spend 10 Million of finding the perps.... How long it will take them doesn't really matter. I am sure that after making a donation to their local security agency they will quickly get some help...

    The Lizard Squad better learn to become The Chamelon Squad and disappear into the background very quickly.

    I never understood the script kiddie desire for "publicity", it's kind of paradoxical.

    9 0 Reply
    1. Anonymous Coward
      Reply Icon
      Anonymous Coward

      Sony do actually have the means to spend 10 Million of finding the perps

      and yet they are getting penetrated more often than a cheap hooker.

      Maybe Sony should spend some cash on cyber security, as it's clearly lacking.

      10 1 Reply
      1. Khaptain Silver badge
        Reply Icon

        Re: Sony do actually have the means to spend 10 Million of finding the perps

        Sony, like all other major players have the difficult position of not knowing in advance how, when or from where hacks are going to take place. They are in effect defending themselves against the known and also the unknown.

        Hackers on the hand have lots of time, the advantage of surpise, can selectively choose what they do and how they do it.

        Cyber security is an endless PITA when you are on the receveing end. Personally I would not like to be responsable for the Cyber security of any of the major players, it must honestly be a tough role to play.

        There is another element in the equation, I intially mentioned "script kiddies" but it might have been far more devious fingers that were a tapping in the keyboards... [Silently reachs for his industrial conspiracy cap]

        5 0 Reply
        1. Salts
          Reply Icon

          Re: Sony do actually have the means to spend 10 Million of finding the perps

          @Khaptain

          You are of course correct but it put me in mind of the response of the IRA after the Brighton hotel bombing, in this case businesses have to be lucky always and the crackers just once.

          "Mrs. Thatcher will now realise that Britain cannot occupy our country and torture our prisoners and shoot our people in their own streets and get away with it. Today we were unlucky, but remember we only have to be lucky once. You will have to be lucky always. Give Ireland peace and there will be no more war." Taylor, Peter (2001). Brits: The War Against the IRA. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 265. ISBN 0-7475-5806-X.

          1 0 Reply
    2. Anonymous Coward
      Reply Icon
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: The Lizard Squad

      I think if I was hacking a multi-nationale, who have huge spending power, I would be a little bit more reticent in announcing my name.

      Sony do actually have the means [ ... ]

      If I were LS, I'd be more worried about all the hackers who are also gamers and who can't get online right now. They're going to be mighty pissed, and indeed, someone has been making a sustained effort to dox them... check pastebin.

      5 0 Reply
  2. K
    Paris Hilton

    Well stated and couldn't agree more. Such attacks have no finesse and little skill attached to them, their only purpose is to create as much disruption and inconvenience as possible, i hope they get the book library chucked at them!

    Paris.. cause like her, they will be going down..

    6 1 Reply
    1. Florida1920
      Reply Icon
      Terminator

      Finesse is highly overrated

      Such attacks have no finesse and little skill attached to them

      So it goes with terrorist attacks, AKA Asymmetric warfare. So it goes with outright vandalism as well. The differences are only of scale. But I think the mindsets of the individuals involved are essentially interchangeable. IMO, politics and religion are only convenient cover stories for most terrorists. Like the poor, terrorists and vandals will always be with us, for many of the same reasons. Society is asymmetric. The Lizards and the Sony hackers may go down, but there will be others to take their places. So far, all we've learned to do is deal with the symptoms.

      0 0 Reply
  3. MJI Silver badge

    Pissing off the wrong people.

    "Hahaha we have disabled xxxx!"

    Where xxxx is your gaming network PSN XBL etc.

    Cue a large number of angry gamers.

    Imagine if you could not play your favourite game and you knew of one of the hackers.

    Would you be able to resist giving them a really good kicking?

    7 0 Reply
    1. Irongut
      Reply Icon

      Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

      After the last PSN hack I wouldn't be stupid enough to buy a Playstation.

      5 1 Reply
      1. FlatSpot
        Reply Icon
        Meh

        Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

        Why is that? I got "free" stuff for the inconvenience that it didn't actually cause me.

        5 0 Reply
        1. Anonymous Coward
          Reply Icon
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

          @FlatSpot - you do know that your details -including whatever you used to pay for the subscription- is now in the hands of whoever cares to download the data, right?

          There's quite possibly enough out there to fuck you right up if someone gets on your case; or even if your number comes up in the "Who shall we choose?" lottery.

          1 5 Reply
          1. Andraž 'ruskie' Levstik
            Reply Icon

            Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

            You know you are stupid if you enter your credit card number or real details into a low security environment such as a gaming network(that includes steam, xbl, etc...).

            I'm still using topup cards from game stores to buy stuff there. I'll never put in a credit card(or at most a prepaid thing that has 0 value 99% of the time and that I use up the moment it's loaded).

            3 1 Reply
            1. Joe 48
              Reply Icon

              Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

              You say low security network, but I'd expect the likes of Sony and MS to know what they are doing when it comes to protecting my personal details. I don't think someone entering their CC details on a gaming site is any different to amazon, paypal and the like. I'd expect most people have used a CC at some point on line these days.

              Runs off to check identity protection is in place......

              4 0 Reply
          2. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
            Reply Icon

            Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

            you do know that your details -including whatever you used to pay for the subscription- is now in the hands of whoever cares to download the data, right?

            Random affirmations on the Internet.

            Citation needed.

            2 0 Reply
            1. Anonymous Coward
              Reply Icon
              Anonymous Coward

              Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

              Fair enough.

              you do know that your details -including whatever you used to pay for the subscription- are probably now in the hands of whoever cares to download the data, right?

              That better, or shall I chuck an 'allegedly' or two in, just to make sure?

              1 0 Reply
              1. Anonymous Coward
                Reply Icon
                Anonymous Coward

                Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

                Bollocks. Ran out of editing time. You were right to call me out on the phrasing Destroy All Monsters. Given the scale and thoroughness of just last week's hacks (the ones that hit the papers that we know about), though, it would seem likely that everyone has been compromised. Certainly the prudent course of action would be to act as if the details were definitely gone. Phrasing it as definite just saved me some words is all.

                0 0 Reply
                1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
                  Reply Icon

                  Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

                  The problem is, we just don't know.

                  0 0 Reply
      2. MJI Silver badge
        Reply Icon

        Re: Pissing off the wrong people.

        It was a DDOS, and I am wondering who's next.

        XBL then PSN, will they try it on STEAM?

        0 0 Reply
  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Maybe SONY isn't as NSA friendly as the NSA would like?

    ATTACK< ATTACK< ATTACK..............All right we give in, what do you want?

    5 1 Reply
  5. Joe 48

    Hang on

    Does this mean MS have passed a security test?

    They attacked MS last week and again on the weekend but could only muster a DDoS attack with no access to their network.

    1 0 Reply
    1. Andyb@B5
      Reply Icon

      Re: Hang on

      That or they don't yet realise they've been hacked though with this lot it seems headlines are their bag so its likely they were not.

      At least by the lizard squad. Thats the problem with security, its an always fluid war zone.

      All a company can do is state that they have either been hacked or have no indication of a hack being or having been perpetrated. Any company which states categorically that it has not been hacked is one I'll view with suspicion when it comes to security.

      1 0 Reply
      1. Adze
        Reply Icon

        Re: Hang on

        Just possibly Sony is the smokescreen Andyb@85... make lots of noise about an obvious target while stealing a quiet march on someone else while the World watches the theatre. As you say, an always fluid warzone, with as many mirrors and as much smoke as you care to code.

        0 0 Reply
  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Welp

    Better get my card details and name changed then...

    (anonymous, because I don't want you all to have my name and card details - you scoundrels!)

    0 0 Reply
  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Public services network

    I doubt this will be the last time we see a headline about hackers taking down a network labelled "PSN"

    0 0 Reply
  8. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge
    Headmaster

    El Reg Tombstone icon when?

    Sony has been battling yet another DDoS of its PlayStation Network ... Hacktivist group the Lizard Squad claimed responsibility for the latest security breach

    In the same way that bludgeoing a car to scrap metal with a sledgehammer is not carjacking, a DDoS crapout is not a "security breach".

    8 0 Reply
    1. Shades
      Reply Icon

      Re: El Reg Tombstone icon when?

      The "hacking" bit raised my eyebrow too. And El Reg makes out that it took out the whole NETWORK, when in reality they just stood in front of the shop DOOR like a bunch of chavs in trackies, baseball caps, spitting all over the place and swearing unnecessarily.

      3 0 Reply
      1. veti Silver badge
        Reply Icon
        Headmaster

        Re: El Reg Tombstone icon when?

        Not quite. A more apt analogy would be "they tricked a bunch of chavs who had no idea where they were, and in most cases probably still, to this day, don't know they were there, into standing about in front of the door etc."

        DDOS may not be Mission: Impossible level security penetration, but it's still a hack. (Not a hack of Sony, as such, but definitely a hack against them.)

        0 0 Reply
    2. Jamie Jones Silver badge
      Reply Icon
      Dead Vulture

      Re: El Reg Tombstone icon when?

      As requested! ----------------------->

      0 0 Reply
  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Guess the feds didn't catch the right culprits in September then?

    http://www.shacknews.com/article/86059/report-lizard-squad-group-behind-various-ddos-attacks-caught-and-apprehended

    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/09/02/lizard_squad_disbands/

    0 1 Reply
  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    The L****D S***D

    are just Hammers...what i would like to find out is, whose hands are holding the hammers?

    3 0 Reply
  11. Kevin McMurtrie Silver badge

    Should I feel sympathy yet?

    No. I just had to return a new Sony Xperia Z3 a refund. The microSD came disabled because Google doesn't like them. That's normally a quick fix except Sony permanently locks the bootloader to protect their DRM system. Yeah, hackers are bad but I don't care here. Sony can't generate revenue and respect for their corporation unless they start respecting their customers.

    6 1 Reply
  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    This isn't hacking...

    Can we please stop calling these kiddies "hackers"? And stop calling DDoS attacks "hacks". They didn't hack anything, they pointed a botnet at some of Sony's servers and produced the equivalent of a digital protest.

    6 0 Reply
  13. TescoValueBrain

    I'll be honest (and please don't hack me, i'm still paying for my TV on HP), but I fail to see what any of this achieves. Sony hasn't made my life worse or better, they just are and I choose whether to buy into it or not. I don't need a government or a self appointed collective to make an informed and adult decision. If I choose to spend my money one way or the other, who are you to say i'm wrong or right? If I spend my (bloody hard earned) cash on something I want, taking that down when all I want to do is relax after a day at work is somewhat counter-intuitive no?

    2 0 Reply
    1. Mr Common Sense
      Reply Icon
      Trollface

      I'm alright jack....

      .... until stuff like this happens.

      1 0 Reply
  14. Christian Berger

    Seems only fit...

    ...considering that that part of Sony probably is one of the largest promoters of malware in the world. Not only have they installed malware on literally millions of computers by using autostart bugs in Windows and their CDs, they still insist on you installing DRM malware in order to consume their music and films.

    Although I'd prefer it if the problem was attacked at the root cause, the DRM companies. Companies like Macrovision or Irdeto which tell clueless executive that somehow their systems will lead to greater sales and reduced piracy.

    0 1 Reply
    1. MJI Silver badge
      Reply Icon

      I blame the video recorder buyers

      Macrovision

      A company Sony were able to ignore until the yanks made them.

      Was fun being able to play a macraprovision DVD and record it to tape. (Needed to return a film to producers and wait for remaster as the layer change went wrong).

      The recording was anamorphic and the downmixed to pro logic was more annoying than the drop in resolution. This was with a very expensive Sony VCR.

      Anyway why did Sony go DRM?

      Well it is the fault of all the people who got Vhs rather than the much much better Beta format. Since the second worst video format ever beat a better format Sony needed to guarantee a source of media, so they bought a few music and film studios.

      Just think if you had bought a Sony Sanyo or Toshiba VCR rather than that Vhs crap we may not have had one of the main innovators dragged down the DRM route.

      Just for fun my Sanyo VTC-M40 still works, just need a post DSO Freeview box since my Freeview PVRs were killed off by DSO.

      0 1 Reply

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