PSN RESTORATION

It has now been a month since the PlayStation network was hacked, but many users have now been told of the process for the restoration of accounts. This is the latest message concerning these findings. 

Sony Computer Entertainment introduces increased security measures ahead of PSN service restoration.

Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) and Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI, the company) will today begin a phased restoration by region of PlayStation Network and Qriocity services. The phased restoration will be on a country by country basis beginning in the Americas, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East.
The first phase of restored services for North America and Europe will include:

• Sign-in for PlayStation Network and Qriocity services, including the resetting of passwords.
• Restoration of online game play across PlayStation 3 and PSP.
• Playback rental video content, if within rental period, of PlayStation Store Video Store on PS3, PSP and Media Go.
• Q Music Unlimited, for current subscribers, on PS3 and PC.
• Access to third party services such as VidZone and MUBI.
• 'Friends' category on PS3, including Friends List, Chat Functionality, Trophy Comparison, etc.
• PlayStation Home.

Increased Security Measures
As the result of a criminal cyber attack on the company's data centre located in San Diego, California, USA, SNEI shut down the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services on 20 April 2011, in order for the company to undergo an investigation and make enhancements to the overall security of the network infrastructure.  
Working closely with several respected outside security firms, the company has implemented new and additional security measures that strengthen safeguards against unauthorized activity, and provide consumers with greater protection of their personal information.
The company has made considerable enhancements to the data security, including updating and adding advanced security technologies, additional software monitoring and penetration and vulnerability testing, and increased levels of encryption and additional firewalls. 
The company also added a variety of other measures to the network infrastructure including an early warning system for unusual activity patterns that could signal an attempt to compromise the network.
"I'd like to send my sincere regret for the inconvenience this incident has caused you, and want to thank you all for the kind patience you've shown as we worked through the restoration process," said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation.
"I can't thank you enough for your patience and support during this time. We know even the most loyal customers have been frustrated by this process and are anxious to use their Sony products and services again. We are taking aggressive action at all levels to address the concerns that were raised by this incident, and are making consumer data protection a full time, company-wide commitment."
"During the past 18 months, we've seen a dramatic rise in the volume of cyber attacks, their sophistication and their impact on businesses. Thwarting cyber-crime requires an evolutionary approach to security that is well integrated, reduces risk exposure and improves efficiencies," said Francis deSouza, senior vice president, Enterprise Security Group, Symantec. "Today's cyber crime attacks are proving to be more covert, more targeted and better organized than those we've seen in years past. In working with Sony on the move of their data centre, it's clear they're implementing measures to reduce security risks moving forward." 
As an additional measure, Fumiaki Sakai, president of Sony Global Solutions Inc. (SGS), has been appointed acting Chief Information Security Officer of SNEI. In addition to his current role at SGS, Mr Sakai, in his role at SNEI, will work to further reinforce overall information security across the company's network infrastructure. 
Mr Sakai will lead the recruiting effort in finding a new and permanent CISO for SNEI. As CISO, Mr. Sakai will report to Tim Schaaff, president, SNEI, as well as to Mr Shinji Hasejima, CIO, Sony Corporation. 
"While we understand the importance of getting our services back online, we did not rush to do so at the expense of extensively and aggressively testing our enhanced security measures. Our consumers' safety remains our number one priority," Hirai continued. "We want to assure our customers that their personal information is being protected with some of the best security technologies available today, so that everyone can feel comfortable enjoying all that PlayStation Network and Qriocity services have to offer." 
The restoration of the services across the Americas, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the Middle East are beginning, and consumers will be able to enjoy some of the online functionality provided by both the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services. The company expects to have the services fully restored by the end of May 2011. 
The company will be offering customers a "Welcome Back" package of services and premium content to all registered PlayStation Network and Qriocity account services.  
The details of this program will be available at eu.playstation.com shortly. 
Before you start using PlayStation Network again...
In restoring PSN, we have introduced a safety measure which means you will need to update your PlayStation Network account password before you can start using PSN again.

If you've got a PlayStation 3, you can do this by updating to system software version 3.61 and then signing in to PlayStation Network from the XMB™ (XrossMediaBar) Menu once the service is restored in your country. Find out more at eu.playstation.com/ps3psn.
Otherwise, you can change your password by visiting https://store.playstation.com/login.gvm on your PC. It shouldn't take more than a few minutes and if you'd like more help you can follow the step by step guide at eu.playstation.com/psppsn.
Please contact us at uk.playstation.com/psnoutage should you have any additional questions. For more information about the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services intrusion and restoration, keep an eye on PlayStation.Blog at blog.eu.playstation.com, twitter.com/PlayStationEU and eu.playstation.com for the latest updates.

Hopefully there will be more to say about pro evo in the next few days. My time spent with PES 2011 since the crash has been focused towards my offline BAL and Master league modes.

I will be writing a couple of posts in the next few days regarding how I have been getting on.

Please feel free to leave comments as I will reply regularly.

Tell me what you think about Pro evo or how you have been affected by the Network Outage on the PS3.

PSN NETWORK DOWN.......

The last few days have been a bit dull for my online gaming. I had been hoping to make up some ground on my progress with MASTER LEAGUE ONLINE, but being a PS3 user has left me in a bit of a pickle!

At first, I believed that I had been having problems with my wireless router, or my general Internet connection. When I turned on my PS3 and logged in with my user account, I was receiving an error message which notified me I was unable to connect to the PlayStation Network and was logged out. I did the usual procedure when web connections seem unable to connect and turned each gadget off, all the way to my modem. I then turned each one on, starting with the modem, but left at least 30 seconds between each.

Did this sort the problem? Nope!

The process got repeated a few times, but yet I was still getting the same message! Gutting! So what was I to do next?

I decided to check my PC connection to the web. This turned out to be fine, so I knew there was no problem with either the modem, or the router. Still wanting an answer, I then turned to the net itself and searched for the latest feeds related to the PSN. 

Low and behold, I had found the answer. Apparently the network had been hacked! The official PlayStation site had released a comment regarding this, but the only news they had, was the network would be down for at least 1-2 days while they worked on getting it back online.

Well as you can imagine, I have been pretty annoyed with the fact that my progress with MLO has been officially halted, but I am sure they are working as best they can to rectify these problems. Until then, I have reverted back to playing my offline master league and BAL modes. These have kept me occupied, but I still can't wait to get back online. 

This is the latest message from the Official PlayStation site:

"We sincerely regret that PlayStation Network and Qriocity services have been suspended, and we are working around the clock to bring them both back online. Our efforts to resolve this matter involve re-building our system to further strengthen our network infrastructure. Though this task is time-consuming, we decided it was worth the time necessary to provide the system with additional security.

We thank you for your patience to date and ask for a little more while we move towards completion of this project. We will continue to give you updates as they become available.

Follow us on Twitter @PlayStationEU for live updates.

Thank you for your patience."

I will try to keep an update of their progress over the next few days and lets all hope they get it sorted!

Thanks for visiting,

Bob