PSN and Anonymous - The Severity of #OpSony, Ongoing or Not.

Currently we are in week 3 of the PlayStation Network being down, very quickly approaching week 4, and I find myself increasingly bothered by the spin(s) on the story by "news" agencies and random gamers.  (Update: We're now in week 4 of the PSN outage).  I'm mostly bothered that so many people are offering boundless barely-informed commentary on this unfortunate series of events without having any real idea of what is and has been going on in relation to the outage.  I would like to help create a simple (yeah, right) explanation of events to help everyone understand, or at least as much as I can.  If you're only interested in my opinion of these events, skip down until you are almost at the end and start reading the paragraph that begins "And here are my thoughts...".

This summation of events could easily send many into a coma, so I will keep it as simple as possible and include links for those of you that wish to pour over the boring details.  Additionally, for any sensitive or young readers, there is likely to be some strong language in some of the links, specifically the ones regarding Anonymous.

The PlayStation 3 was released with a feature called "Other OS" which allowed users to "transform your PS3 into a home computer" by installing Linux or certain other operating systems.  This feature was not available on the newer PlayStation 3 Slim consoles and was eventually removed from the older models through a firmware update, as Sony had "security concerns" (pay attention, as that was pretty darn prophetic of Sony).  Installing an operating system such as Linux would allow users to install and run homebrew applications and additionally bootleg (or pirated) copies of video games, which is commonplace among hackers, albeit unlawful.

A class action lawsuit was filed against Sony for the removal of this feature, which is a legitimate way of dealing with issues such as this one.

George "GeoHot" Hotz was one of a number of hackers who was determined to regain the ability to run an Other OS on the PS3 and created and distributed instructions on how to bypass Sony's changes and allow users to once again install an Other OS on the PlayStation 3.

Sony filed a lawsuit against GeoHot, went to court and was granted access to user information from people who had funded and visited GeoHot's PS3 jailbreak info sites.  Rumors suggested that Microsoft covered legal expenses for GeoHot, but Sony eventually dropped the lawsuit and reached a settlement with GeoHot.

The "hacktivist" group Anonymous proceeded to get involved by declaring war on Sony, even though Sony followed legal courses of action, and quietly reached the settlement with GeoHot.  Anonymous kicked things off by obtaining personal information of Sony executives, then proceeded with an organized attack.  There were some creepy comments made by members of Anonymous regarding the families and children of Sony execs.

(Here's my response to Anonymous in regards to that last link:

Dear Anonymous,

Let cshawnc teach you something your mothers didn't:  When your mother tells you that she isn't giving you the recipe to your grandmothers world-famous meatloaf, you don't break into your mother's, or grandmother's, house and steal the recipe anyway.  You may feel free to create your own meatloaf recipe and share it, or not, with whomever you like.)

Facing backlash from PlayStation Network users, coupled with the public announcement of the Sony settlement with GeoHot, who were unable to access online features of the PS3, Anonymous announced they would cease attacks that would affect PSN users.

Then on April 20 the PlayStation Network went down.  No substantial updates from Sony until they released information that PSN user data had been compromised, and that they were unsure as to whether any credit card data had been obtained.  There were several updates on the PS blog clarifying various issues, and then came Sony's response to the US House of Representatives via an 8 page letter.  While remaining quiet at first, Sony became forthcoming with information regarding the entire incident.  Sony had also clarified that they "expedited an already planned move of the (server) system to a new data center in a different location that has been under construction and development for several months".

Sony was additionally forthcoming with information regarding password safety.  Speculation regarding the PSN outage compared it to the 15 day X-box Live outage that began in December 2007.  While the Rothken Law Firm in the US and McPhadden Samac Tuovi in Canada filed class action lawsuits against Sony, Sony offers ID theft protection to their users, compensation for lack of services and another update.  Sony maintains that there have been no cases of identity or credit card theft so far.

Anonymous issued another statement claiming "it's not us this time".  While many Anonymous posts sound like they come from a 14 year-old brat who has just stolen a joint and some porn mags from his older brother's bedroom (who then brags about it and eventually gets found out by said older brother), there are some that seem to come from slightly more mature sources, including the IRC log of the initial #OpSony attack.  (huh huh...  huh huh... you just clicked on the porn mags link.  probably twice!)

Some Anonymous members pointed fingers at Anonymous, stating "If you say you are Anonymous, and do something as Anonymous, then Anonymous did it."  To be completely fair, I should also point out that Sony was accused of running obsolete software, which potentially made things simpler for hackers, but Sony denies those claims.  Rumors circulated that another attack on Sony was on Mother's Day weekend, but apparently did not succeed.  Now Capcom has chimed in with an update on how much money they are losing during this outage, and people are panicking that basic online features won't return until May 31.


And here are my thoughts on the entire matter.  While Sony is not without fault in this matter, they were obviously working on upgrading their servers before the attacks started.  The information stolen was the users name, address, sex, birthdate and password security question.  With the exception of the security question, all of the information I provided is out in the world anyway.  The security question can easily be changed, and was not the security question I used elsewhere.  So my opinion is, big deal.  Plus, Sony is providing some extensive ID theft protection.  Additionally, Sony stated specifically that complete restoration of PSN (which includes PS Store, Qriocity services etc.) may not happen until the end of May, but partial restoration of services, including playing games online, should be restored within a few days according to the blog post of May 10.

I am extremely upset with the law firms that have filed suit against Sony, as I think it is shameful that they didn't give Sony a chance to correct the situation with their users.  If Sony were to not provide compensation for this breach, I would definitely get behind a class-action suit.

As far as Anonymous goes, I would like to reference the #OpSony statement; does this sound like reasonable people or does it sound like people who would stop at nothing to bring Sony down?  Even if they don't sound that ominous, didn't they at least incite others into working toward bringing Sony down?  Because they've done a fairly good job so far.  Anonymous may be correct when they stated that they don't steal credit card information, but that's difficult to believe from someone without a face, and feasible that they may not intend to utilize the user and credit card data for any reason than to compromise Sony integrity.  Anonymous doesn't stand out in the open, they hide behind false identities and Guy Fawkes masks, instead of taking their issues to court for resolution or making their case publicly.  This makes it very difficult to contact them to express any dislike of their actions.

Which brings me to my final point:  If you found this helpful in any way, if you know anyone confused about what is going on, if you want word to reach Anonymous that these actions are not acceptable and they need to reform their mode of operation, please share this and encourage others to share it.  The PlayStation Network has not yet returned, but when it does, I don't want to start this all over again.

Why "The Inexperienced Gamer"?

My intention for starting this blog stems from my recent experiences with reviews and ratings of video games and playing those games.

I've always enjoyed video games.  I've plugged plenty of quarters into arcade games.  I've spent quite a bit of time playing on consoles belonging to family and friends.  I've only ever owned two consoles- a Super Nintendo my parents bought for me around the time I graduated high school, and a PlayStation 3 I purchased for myself in December 2007.

Because there are so many games available, I regularly turned to reviews and game ratings to decide what games to play, often being disappointed or frustrated with games I thought were recommended for my skill level.  It seems to me that most reviews and ratings for games are geared toward very experienced gamers, and those with less experience are left out of the ratings equation.  We no longer live in a society where gamers are all very experienced and talented at gaming.  We do live in a society where casual gaming is certainly more commonplace and I therefore believe that inexperienced, or less experienced, gamers need some help navigating the vast options laid out before them.  My hope is that this blog will help you, or someone you know, have fun gaming experiences.