PSN down. Update8: Welcome Back Package is Live

[Queasy]

Update 8: The Welcome Back Package is now live.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/06/03/welcome-back/

Update 7: PSN Store is back. There will be another store update on Friday. The Welcome Back package games will be coming soon. Full details of what is included in the first PSN Store update is here.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/06/01/playstation-store-is-available-and-updated-now/

UPDATE 6: PSN Store will be back by the end of this week.

Tokyo, May 31, 2011 – Sony Corporation and Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) announced today that Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI, the company) will fully restore all PlayStation®Network services in the Americas, Europe/PAL territories and Asia, excluding Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea by the end of this week.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011...including-playstation-store-return-this-week/

UPDATE 5: PSN Store not back until May 31st at earliest.

The latest information I have on PlayStation Store is that we are aiming to have it live by the end of May. Contrary to popular rumours, it will not be reopening tomorrow but we will let you know here as soon as the date is confirmed.

Source
​

UPDATE 4:

PSN IS COMING BACK UP! Have to download a firmware update first (3.61). They are slowly rolling out the PSN restoration with North America first.

Map - http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/05/14/play-on-–-psn-restoration-begins-now/

Kaz Hirai video statement - http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/05/14/kazuo-hirai-playstation-network-relaunch-announcement/

Links to download it to your PC and update via USB memory device.

• US Official Download Link 3.61
• Alternate Link for US Update 3.61
• EU Official Download Link 3.61
• Japan Official Download Link 3.61
• Australia/New Zealand 3.61 Link

UPDATE 3:

I know you all want to know exactly when the services will be restored. At this time, I can’t give you an exact date, as it will likely be at least a few more days. We’re terribly sorry for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience as we work through this process.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/05/10/psn-restoration-timeline-update/

UPDATE 2: SOE brought its servers down after discovering yesterday that its services had been compromised and personal data and a 2007 credit card database had been stolen.

This means that both the PC and PS3 versions of games like Free Realms, DCUO, Magic: The Gathering - Tachtics have been affected along with the the PC MMOs like Everquest II and Star Wars: Clone Wars.

http://www.soe.com/securityupdate/



UPDATE:
Thank you for your patience while we work to resolve the current outage of PlayStation Network & Qriocity services. We are currently working to send a similar message to the one below via email to all of our registered account holders regarding a compromise of personal information as a result of an illegal intrusion on our systems. These malicious actions have also had an impact on your ability to enjoy the services provided by PlayStation Network and Qriocity including online gaming and online access to music, movies, sports and TV shows. We have a clear path to have PlayStation Network and Qriocity systems back online, and expect to restore some services within a week.
We’re working day and night to ensure it is done as quickly as possible. We appreciate your patience and feedback.

Valued PlayStation Network/Qriocity Customer:
We have discovered that between April 17 and April 19, 2011, certain PlayStation Network and Qriocity service user account information was compromised in connection with an illegal and unauthorized intrusion into our network. In response to this intrusion, we have:

1. Temporarily turned off PlayStation Network and Qriocity services;
2. Engaged an outside, recognized security firm to conduct a full and complete investigation into what happened; and
3. Quickly taken steps to enhance security and strengthen our network infrastructure by re-building our system to provide you with greater protection of your personal information.

We greatly appreciate your patience, understanding and goodwill as we do whatever it takes to resolve these issues as quickly and efficiently as practicable.

Although we are still investigating the details of this incident, we believe that an unauthorized person has obtained the following information that you provided: name, address (city, state, zip), country, email address, birthdate, PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login, and handle/PSN online ID. It is also possible that your profile data, including purchase history and billing address (city, state, zip), and your PlayStation Network/Qriocity password security answers may have been obtained. If you have authorized a sub-account for your dependent, the same data with respect to your dependent may have been obtained. While there is no evidence at this time that credit card data was taken, we cannot rule out the possibility. If you have provided your credit card data through PlayStation Network or Qriocity, out of an abundance of caution we are advising you that your credit card number (excluding security code) and expiration date may have been obtained.

For your security, we encourage you to be especially aware of email, telephone, and postal mail scams that ask for personal or sensitive information. Sony will not contact you in any way, including by email, asking for your credit card number, social security number or other personally identifiable information. If you are asked for this information, you can be confident Sony is not the entity asking. When the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services are fully restored, we strongly recommend that you log on and change your password. Additionally, if you use your PlayStation Network or Qriocity user name or password for other unrelated services or accounts, we strongly recommend that you change them, as well.

To protect against possible identity theft or other financial loss, we encourage you to remain vigilant, to review your account statements and to monitor your credit reports. We are providing the following information for those who wish to consider it:
U.S. residents are entitled under U.S. law to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit bureaus. To order your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call toll-free (877) 322-8228.

We have also provided names and contact information for the three major U.S. credit bureaus below. At no charge, U.S. residents can have these credit bureaus place a “fraud alert” on your file that alerts creditors to take additional steps to verify your identity prior to granting credit in your name. This service can make it more difficult for someone to get credit in your name. Note, however, that because it tells creditors to follow certain procedures to protect you, it also may delay your ability to obtain credit while the agency verifies your identity. As soon as one credit bureau confirms your fraud alert, the others are notified to place fraud alerts on your file. Should you wish to place a fraud alert, or should you have any questions regarding your credit report, please contact any one of the agencies listed below.

Experian: 888-397-3742; www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
Equifax: 800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
TransUnion: 800-680-7289; www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

You may wish to visit the web site of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission at www.consumer.gov/idtheft or reach the FTC at 1-877-382-4357 or 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580 for further information about how to protect yourself from identity theft. Your state Attorney General may also have advice on preventing identity theft, and you should report instances of known or suspected identity theft to law enforcement, your State Attorney General, and the FTC. For North Carolina residents, the Attorney General can be contacted at 9001 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-9001; telephone (877) 566-7226; or www.ncdoj.gov. For Maryland residents, the Attorney General can be contacted at 200 St. Paul Place, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202; telephone: (888) 743-0023; or www.oag.state.md.us.

 

[gorcorps]

Who knows, anonymous doesn't make any sense in their attacks. They hit and run which does little to prove anything. If they were really hellbent on bringing Sony to their knees they'd focus all their time and effort on never letting PSN get back on its feet without some serious work.

It's like a teen throwing a rock through a liquor store window when they didn't take his fake ID... it doesn't solve anything and it's really just a minor annoyance and they're whining about stuff that's not really legal anyway. Anonymous is nothing more than children with rocks thinking they make a difference, when really they cause no more than a small hiccup in the day to day activities of these places. You think Sony cares terribly that PSN is down? They may lose some DLC sales, but it's nothing compared to how fucked the gamers feel when they can't play.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Dare I say it?

...

XBL FTW! :awe:
[/troll]

Just glad I have both consoles, so I am never without my Netflix. Though, I was able to access Netflix even after the PSN sign-in failed.

 

[Via]

Just glad I have both consoles, so I am never without my Netflix. Though, I was able to access Netflix even after the PSN sign-in failed.

I wasn't, and my Xbox is out. Pretty fucking frustrating.

 

[zerocool84]

Both SCEA and SCEE are acknowledging service outages for the PlayStation Network (as is our own PS3, for that matter -- we just wanted to play Castle Crashers for a few minutes!). Users have been reporting inability to sign in to PSN since yesterday, and a thread on the EU PlayStation site calls out specific issues with Qriocity, PlayStation Store, and account management. On Twitter, Sony said PSN is "down for maintenance."

That message board thread will be updated, Sony says, when there's more information on the outages (like when they'll end). Right now it's just one useful post followed by seven pages of complaints, and complaints about complaints.

Update: The PlayStation Blog now reports that " it may be a full day or two before we're able to get the service completely back up and running."

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/04/21/psn-down-for-maintenance-in-north-america-and-europe/

 

[EightySix Four]

While we are investigating the cause of the Network outage, we wanted to alert you that it may be a full day or two before we’re able to get the service completely back up and running. Thank you very much for your patience while we work to resolve this matter. Please stay tuned to this space for more details, and we’ll update you again as soon as we can.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/04/21/latest-update-on-psn-outage/


EDIT: Dammit zerocool

 

[Anteaus]

Maybe one of their IT guys failed to agree to the EULA?

 

[mmntech]

Dare I say it?

...

PC FTW! :awe:
[/troll]

Fixed. Don't tie me down to one server. :sneaky:

I'm guessing DDoS attack. Whenever Sony says "emergency maintenance", that's usually the case.

 

[EightySix Four]

Fixed. Don't tie me down to one server. :sneaky:

I'm guessing DDoS attack. Whenever Sony says "emergency maintenance", that's usually the case.

It would require a masssive DDoS to take them offline for days. They hire a service to deal with DDoS's that quickly blocks IPs and can handle far more bandwidth than /b/tards could normally deliver. So either someone else with way more firepower went after them or it was a more sophisticated attack.

 

[Queasy]

The issue reportedly is originating in Japan. Don't know if it is an after effect of the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear power/power supply issues there but it could take a couple of days to fix as mentioned above.

Anonymous is saying they had nothing to do with the outage.

 

[her209]

The issue reportedly is originating in Japan. Don't know if it is an after effect of the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear power/power supply issues there but it could take a couple of days to fix as mentioned above.

Anonymous is saying they had nothing to do with the outage.

Anonymous caused an aftershock in Japan.

 

[mmntech]

Epic DRM fail on Capcom's part. Why does a console even need this?!

The ongoing Playstation Network outage also makes a couple Capcom games unplayable, even offline.

Capcom confirmed with Kotaku that Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 and the Final Fight/Magic Sword game pack are unplayable without an online connection. The issue is caused by Capcom's use of a particular form of copy protection for the games which requires an active connection to PSN to play the titles.

http://kotaku.com/#!5794533/playstation-outage-makes-some-capcom-games-unplayable-offline

 

[Joseph F]

Who knows, anonymous doesn't make any sense in their attacks. They hit and run which does little to prove anything. If they were really hellbent on bringing Sony to their knees they'd focus all their time and effort on never letting PSN get back on its feet without some serious work.

It's like a teen throwing a rock through a liquor store window when they didn't take his fake ID... it doesn't solve anything and it's really just a minor annoyance and they're whining about stuff that's not really legal anyway. Anonymous is nothing more than children with rocks thinking they make a difference, when really they cause no more than a small hiccup in the day to day activities of these places. You think Sony cares terribly that PSN is down? They may lose some DLC sales, but it's nothing compared to how fucked the gamers feel when they can't play.

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one that thinks that those retards are just that.

Epic DRM fail on Capcom's part. Why does a console even need this?!

http://kotaku.com/#!5794533/playstation-outage-makes-some-capcom-games-unplayable-offline

I can't believe that this is actually on console games. I think it's due to the whole PS3 master key leak and I sure as FUCK hope that they don't start doing this from now on or else I'll never buy a PS3. (I have 56k so I have no way of connecting a PS3 to the internet unless they start selling a 56 modem with it. )

 

[Anteaus]

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one that thinks that those retards are just that.



I can't believe that this is actually on console games. I think it's due to the whole PS3 master key leak and I sure as FUCK hope that they don't start doing this from now on or else I'll never buy a PS3. (I have 56k so I have no way of connecting a PS3 to the internet unless they start selling a 56 modem with it. )

I predicted this early last year. Don't be surprised if the next console refresh is tethered to the internet in the same fashion that Steam is to PC. My guess is that we will eventually get to the point where all console games, whether purchased in stores or digitally, will require activation/registration with an online account to be used. It is the only way they can destroy the used game market while also all but eliminating casual piracy.

It seems a bit extreme, but oddly enough the majority of PC gamers have accepted it (Steam, Impulse, etc) and as a result PC game sales in general has increased by a large amount.

The way they figure it, even if they lose sales from people who have crappy or no internet access, the vast majority of customers do have access to some sort of median broadband, and the savings due to a highly controlled gaming network would cover the loses.

 

[Joseph F]

Actually it's not going to eliminate piracy. All it's going to do is give legal gamers a hard time. The hackers ALWAYS find a way to crack whatever ridiculous DRM the industry puts out.

 

[Anteaus]

Actually it's not going to eliminate piracy. All it's going to do is give legal gamers a hard time. The hackers ALWAYS find a way to crack whatever ridiculous DRM the industry puts out.

You're right, but they aren't trying to elimate piracy, only make it negligible. Its a simple effort/reward ratio. No matter what your doing, if you make it a big enough pain in the ass then the majority of people will just give up or not try at all.

If you tie everything to online accounts, the only way around it is the to patch the drm out of individual games, which requires a hacked OS, which makes it impossible to get online, which in turn makes many games less valuable. For example, if MS or Sony made online connectivity a requirement, every pirate would literally have to maintain a second console to be used offline exclusively if they planned on still using legit software and online services.

Right off the bad you can see there is a cost component to piracy in the form of getting a second console, which means they just made some money off of you, as well as made piracy too expensive or risky for average joe. They don't have to stop everyone...just most. Once you negate the optical drive as a DRM mechanism, everything gets much simpler to enforce.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Sigh, I was going to watch a bit of netflix streaming tonight.

I could fire up the 360, but I'm too cheap to pay MS $40/year for Live Gold when I was only using it for Netflix.

Maybe I'll finally try connecting a PC to the TV.

 

[Dr. Acid Avatar]

Actually it's not going to eliminate piracy. All it's going to do is give legal gamers a hard time. The hackers ALWAYS find a way to crack whatever ridiculous DRM the industry puts out.

Totally agree man. It's like a game of chess between Devs and hackers. Sometimes I think the legitimate costumers are treated as pawns. :'(

 

[EightySix Four]

If you tie everything to online accounts, the only way around it is the to patch the drm out of individual games, which requires a hacked OS, which makes it impossible to get online, which in turn makes many games less valuable. For example, if MS or Sony made online connectivity a requirement, every pirate would literally have to maintain a second console to be used offline exclusively if they planned on still using legit software and online services.

That's a very big assumption. Once you have true control of the OS and hardware, you can make it respond to ID requests and such with whatever you want. Sure, it'll be a race, but once hardware is compromised, the manufacturer is f*cked.

 

[Anteaus]

That's a very big assumption. Once you have true control of the OS and hardware, you can make it respond to ID requests and such with whatever you want. Sure, it'll be a race, but once hardware is compromised, the manufacturer is f*cked.

Obviously you are correct, that if your committed enough and willing to systematically eliminate all obstacles in your path you can eventually create a package that can do what your talking about, but again too many people talk in black and white instead of gray. Remember DRM is no longer just about piracy. Preventing the sale of used games is also of value to developers, therefore DRM now has an alternate purpose.

Some argue that they shouldn't use DRM because it won't prevent all piracy. I think this is a fallacy of thought. Think about it this way. Let's imagine your home is on a busy street and every 5 minutes someone comes up to your front door and tries to open it. If it opens, that person goes inside and steals your tv. If it's locked, they continue on down to the next house. Now imagine that every 10th person is carrying an axe. The person with the axe tests the door lock and finds it locked, so they use the axe and break down the door, walk inside, and take the tv.

DRM is very similar. They know they won't ever be able to stop the committed person with the axe. History is shown us that if its easy to copy a game, it is pirated more than a game that's harder to copy. Part if it is effort, part of it is psychological. Some people are dissuaded simply by the idea that they might lose access if they get caught, and given that MS and Sony are stepping up their ability to scan memory for minute differences, its a fine line to walk. Fortunately for the developers, from a business standpoint most users are cattle that they merely need to keep in the pin.

 

[Beev]

Sigh, I was going to watch a bit of netflix streaming tonight.

I could fire up the 360, but I'm too cheap to pay MS $40/year for Live Gold when I was only using it for Netflix.

Maybe I'll finally try connecting a PC to the TV.

It's bullshit that you have to pay to use a service you already pay for.

 

[fbrdphreak]

I don't know about you guys, but I was still able to use Netflix. I turn the PS3 on, launch Netflix, and it prompts me to sign-in. I try to sign-in a couple times and if that fails, I just hit Back to clear the sign-in screen, but Netflix is still up & loading. Shortly thereafter Netflix loads and I'm good to go. Takes all of 30 seconds

 

[boshuter]

Yep..... Netflix works just fine without psn.

 

[Via]

That's how it used to work for me, but not this thime.

 

[chuckywang]

This is obviously the work of GlaDoS