On January 21, 2014, U.S. District Judge Anthony Battaglia issued a 97 page orderthat dismissed the majority of the claims in a putative class action against various Sony entities, claims relating to the 2011 hack into the computer network system that Sony used to provide online gaming and Internet connectivity through PSP handhelds and PS3 game consoles.
According to Judge Battaglia, “The fifty-one claims alleged in the FACC can be categorized into nine sub-groups: (1) negligence;… More
It was revealed recently that Sony’s on-line services were the subject of another significant attack. This incident, however, did not exploit a vulnerability in Sony’s security infrastructure so much as it highlighted the cascading effect of data breaches.
Rather than try to scale any fences or jimmy any windows, this attack used account holders’ own keys to open the front door. According to a statement by Sony,… More
We are six months into 2011, and it seems destined to be “The Year of the Breach.” In just the past few months, major American (and multi-national) corporations and institutions have reported that they have been the victims of some kind of security breach:
On May 5, a consumer class action was filed against Sony, relating to the data breaches in its Sony PlayStation and related services. The complaint alleges negligence, invasion of privacy and misappropriation of confidential financial information, as well as breach of express and implied contract. No specific damages were alleged. More
The scope of the Sony data breach is growing, but the public focus continues to be on Sony’s actions following the breach, rather than on steps to prevent or mitigate events like these in the first place. As we noted earlier, this focus emphasizes a de facto burden-shifting, in which consumers bear the risk of using on-line or other services, and also are left to face the consequences of any resulting identity theft.… More
The EU’s Justice Commissioner has chimed in on the Sony data breach, stating that Sony must "take the relevant technical and organizational measures to guarantee protection against data loss or an unjustified access." More
Sony’s unenviable status as the victim of the record theft of 77,000,000 individuals’ personal information underscores a reality that the on-line business community would like its army of customers to forget: it’s not just that the so-called “hackers” can be very good at what they do, it’s that the appointed guardians of legally protected personal information are not necessarily awake at the switch. Two weeks after this “illegal and unauthorized” intrusion —… More