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Hackers Targeting Xbox Live
darthcamaro writes "Windows isn't the only piece of Microsoft technology that hackers are attacking anymore. During a presentation at the SecTor security conference in Toronto, a Facetime security researcher revealed numerous methods by which Xbox users are being hacked today. 'Though the Xbox doesn't have the number one market share, it is the top target for hackers,' Boyd said. 'Xbox Live has 17 million plus subscribers, and that service requires payment.'"
That explains why these 12 and 13 year-old kids keep pwning me in Halo. Damn hackers.
Don't be confused. They're not hacking your hardware or the Xbox Live servers. They're using social engineering and any publicly available information (courtesy of things users choose to divulge in their profiles) to attempt to get passwords.
Big difference between hacking & phishing. Moreover, there's nothing particularly unique to the XBox Live service & this phishing, either.
The "researcher" who is quoted in this article comes off like a moron.
He complains that there is no way to hide one's gamerscore. NO SHIT. It is called social networking. GAMERSCORE = (imagined) PENILE LENGTH INCREASE. You don't farking hide it, the entire point is to show it off.
Next up, sending someone a message "g1ve me urz PW and I'll givez you 1,000,000 gamerscores!!" is not hacking. It is exploiting people's greed. There is a big difference.
Likewise wussies DOS'ing a game server to get back at the people who kicked their wimpy arse is also not new, it happens WAY more often in PC games, since the majority of PC games have dedicated servers whereas only a few (but popular) Xbox 360 titles use dedicated servers.
In summary, these are not "hackers targetting Xbox Live". 99% of them don't even rank as script kiddies.
Need help treating your acne? Come here!
if you RTFA, what you basically see is this
- Xbox LIVE accounts are worth something, and often have CC info embedded in them
- all of the techniques are for getting control of an XBOX live account or DOSing an XBOX live user
- all of the non-DOS techniques are SOCIAL engineering "attacks"
The XBOX Live network is actually pretty solid, with IPsec between endpoints and servers. The successful "attacks" at the network layer are essentially ping-floods or traffic stoppages [i.e. the Halo bugs where you could turn off your cable modem and thus disconnect without killing your ELO ranking].
Finally, regarding the point about market share / attractiveness to hackers: this is stupid.
XBOX Live has more paying customers than any other console gaming network. Looking at # of consoles sold is not the same thing as attractiveness for phishers/scammers.
So, Mod the Article (-1: Epic Fail)
My opinions are my own, and do not necessarily represent those of my employer.
RTFA, there is no hacking being done. It's all DoS attacks, social engineering, and phishing scams. These methods are all independent of the hardware and in most cases the services being offered.
Also, while the xbox may not have the largest marketshare I would argue that it is very likely to have the largest and most active online community. The article is about "hacking" account information, not the hardware or software itself.
This is misleading.
XB360 is not the top console, no. Wii is. But how many of those Wii players network their machines? And how many of those also attach payment information to their machines?
In terms of network accounts with cash flow attached to them (ie. paid subscribers to a network service), Microsoft is number one. There are more paid XBox Live accounts worldwide than there are active "World of Warcraft" accounts! When looked at this way, Nintendo and Sony aren't even close. And so, the priority for hackers makes a great deal of sense.