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179193
Sun, 05/01/2011 - 16:31
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https://oananews.org//node/179193
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Sony asks FBI to probe PlayStation Network data breach
TOKYO, May 1 Kyodo -
Sony Corp. said Sunday it has asked the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to look into a recent data breach involving its popular PlayStation Network services.
Executive Vice President Kazuo Hirai said Sony has asked the FBI to investigate, although there is no indication that the credit card information of up to 10 million PlayStation network users around the world has been accessed.
At a press conference at Sony headquarters in Tokyo, Hirai said while there was ''no evidence that (the credit card data) have been taken at this point,'' the company could not state with certainty that the data have not been leaked.
The company will shoulder fees for credit card replacement if its clients wish to replace their cards, he added.
On Wednesday, Sony said a hacker may have obtained personal information of all 77 million users of its PlayStation Network services around the world, possibly including credit card numbers, and called on users to regularly monitor their credit card bills.
Hirai, who doubles as president of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., apologized to the company's network service customers, while saying it would soon begin gradually restoring online games services, which it shut down after the breach was revealed, aiming at complete resumption within May.
''We extend our deepest apologies to our clients for causing so much trouble,'' he said.
In a bid to stem anger among users, the company will provide certain content for game consoles free of charge.
Hirai said the PlayStation Network services remained the most important pillar of the company's strategy and the company would continue to strengthen them.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry urged Sunday that Sony submit a report on the facts and circumstances regarding the incident and countermeasures to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents.
The company said it believes an unauthorized person obtained the personal information, including names, addresses, e-mail addresses, birth dates and passwords, by unlawfully accessing the systems between April 17 and 19. The data were managed by a group company based in the United States.
In response to the intrusion, Sony temporarily shut down the network services on April 20, asked an outside security firm to conduct a full investigation into the incident and took steps to enhance security and strengthen its network infrastructure.
Following the revelation of the incident, a U.S. House of Representatives panel on Friday sent a host of questions to Sony and urged it to shed light on the circumstances that led to the incident.
While the incident could develop into a compensation issue, there is growing criticism in the United States that Sony was slow in disclosing information.
Hirai said Sunday it took time for the company to analyze the massive amount of data before it could address the public about the incident.
As of March 20, there were 77 million accounts for the services offered in about 60 countries, according to Sony. It is estimated the services have around 9 million users in Japan.
Sony Corp. said Sunday it has asked the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation to look into a recent data breach involving its popular PlayStation Network services.
Executive Vice President Kazuo Hirai said Sony has asked the FBI to investigate, although there is no indication that the credit card information of up to 10 million PlayStation network users around the world has been accessed.
At a press conference at Sony headquarters in Tokyo, Hirai said while there was ''no evidence that (the credit card data) have been taken at this point,'' the company could not state with certainty that the data have not been leaked.
The company will shoulder fees for credit card replacement if its clients wish to replace their cards, he added.
On Wednesday, Sony said a hacker may have obtained personal information of all 77 million users of its PlayStation Network services around the world, possibly including credit card numbers, and called on users to regularly monitor their credit card bills.
Hirai, who doubles as president of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., apologized to the company's network service customers, while saying it would soon begin gradually restoring online games services, which it shut down after the breach was revealed, aiming at complete resumption within May.
''We extend our deepest apologies to our clients for causing so much trouble,'' he said.
In a bid to stem anger among users, the company will provide certain content for game consoles free of charge.
Hirai said the PlayStation Network services remained the most important pillar of the company's strategy and the company would continue to strengthen them.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry urged Sunday that Sony submit a report on the facts and circumstances regarding the incident and countermeasures to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents.
The company said it believes an unauthorized person obtained the personal information, including names, addresses, e-mail addresses, birth dates and passwords, by unlawfully accessing the systems between April 17 and 19. The data were managed by a group company based in the United States.
In response to the intrusion, Sony temporarily shut down the network services on April 20, asked an outside security firm to conduct a full investigation into the incident and took steps to enhance security and strengthen its network infrastructure.
Following the revelation of the incident, a U.S. House of Representatives panel on Friday sent a host of questions to Sony and urged it to shed light on the circumstances that led to the incident.
While the incident could develop into a compensation issue, there is growing criticism in the United States that Sony was slow in disclosing information.
Hirai said Sunday it took time for the company to analyze the massive amount of data before it could address the public about the incident.
As of March 20, there were 77 million accounts for the services offered in about 60 countries, according to Sony. It is estimated the services have around 9 million users in Japan.
