A Safer PlayStation Network Is Back Online
After weeks of separation from the popular online network, PlayStation 3 owners should now have access to Sony’s PlayStation Network, Qriocity and the multiplayer online portions of their games, according to Consumer Products and Services head Kazuo Hirai. In a video blog posted Saturday, Hirai said PlayStation Network’s full restoration, since multiple hacker attacks last month, would occur in phases, and should be completed by the end of this month.
Along with bringing PlayStation Network (PSN) back online, users will benefit from enhanced security features, including “increased levels of encryption, additional firewalls, and a new early warning detection system for any unusual activity that could signal an attack on the network,” according to Hirai’s video.
In order to return to their online gaming as well as popular services such as Netflix and Hulu, PSN users will have to download newly released firmware, version 3.61, for their PlayStation 3 gaming systems. Once launched, the new firmware will force a password change, ensuring hackers can’t log back in again with previously stolen credentials.
It would appear that enough PSN users have enough faith in the new security measures that Sony’s servers had to be restarted yesterday due to an overwhelming number of password change requests.
Along with the new layers of protection, Sony is offering to the 77 million affected PSN users a free year of All Clear Identify Plus identity theft insurance. Online personal information monitoring, priority access to private investigators and identify restoration specialists and up to $1 million of identity theft insurance per user is included in the package.
Despite these efforts and the free insurance, some are calling for Sony to release police reports related to the attacks on their system, in order that affected users may protect themselves further by requesting a credit freeze at consumer reporting agencies such as TransUnion, Experian and Equifax.
PlayStation users: Have you had any issues related to downloading the firmware, changing your password or obtaining the free insurance? If so, we’d love to hear from you. Please let the staff of Technorati know, in the comments below!
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