New PS3 Firmware Contains Backdoor

Vectormatic noted the rumor floating around that the most recent PS3 patch has a backdoor, and "Sony can now remotely execute code on the PS3 as soon as you connect. This can do whatever Sony wants it to do, such as verifying system files or searching for homebrew. Sony can change the code and add new detection methods without any firmware updates."

Comments

AGAIN, Sony?

[MarioMax]

Didn't you learn from your mistakes the last time you tried this?

Re:AGAIN, Sony?

[Dunbal]

Yes, they learned it was SO cheap that it's worth doing in all Sony products.

Re:AGAIN, Sony?

[hypergreatthing]

ohh so you mean besides the sony root kit and remotely disabling blueray player fiasco didn't tell you way in advanced not to buy sony products?

Re:AGAIN, Sony?

[TheGratefulNet]

they learned that the kids today will buy anything if its shiny. rootkits? sony music vs the world? optical discs with invasive DRM? annoying copy/read protections? proprietary connectors that cost as much as the unit, itself? remember all that stuff?

wait, hang on:

"oh look, a new video game to keep us distracted. lets get it!"

its impossible to get a boycott going; the 'shininess' wins with today's kids and they do NOT ever vote with their wallets. they buy sony blue ray (no, I'm not spelling it their way), they encourage the DRM with their purchases and sony laughs all the way to the bank.

I can't see any products sony offers that isn't also available elsewhere and better. not the exact same thing, but sony is *fully* boycottable with very little pain involved. its easy to do.

please consider not buying sony. ever. you can find alternatives. you can, really.

Re:AGAIN, Sony?

[overlordofmu]

I like that Sony can proactively look for cheating on the PS3. If you want to jailbreak your PS3, you are running your own firmware and this doesn't affect you anyway. If someone is pissed that they cannot pirate games or run modded games to cheat, maybe they should work harder at cheating and quit bitching about Sony beating them at their own game.

Currated computing like iPhones and PS3's are preferred by some people. I am an open-source zealot and totally passionate about open systems and software. But sometimes, the system being closed or locked down is a good thing.

Now, I do believe that there should be no repercussion for jailbreaking your PS3. Mod away at that fucker, hardware and software, and if someone tries to attack you via the law that is wrong. However, I do not want to see you on the PSN with your cracked PS3 and I don't care if you cannot play new games on it because they require new firmware. You chose to mod the thing and if that excludes you from the walled garden of the PSN that is because it should. A locked down system with verified binaries is a primary method for preventing cheating with online games.

So why do I like Sony? Why do I buy products from a company that assfucks its customers? The answer is "pragmatism". I love to play video games. Now I used to be a PC gamer. However, the constant fight to keep my hardware current and then paying money to a company that, clearly in my view, is a much bigger assfucker of their customer, Microsoft, was expensive and a less preferrable option.

The PS3 is the beautiful piece of hardware. Microsoft's offering pales in comparison to the PS3. For example, I just played "Dead Space 2" without swapping disks and also got the game "Dead Space: Extraction" with motion controls in HD on the same disk. None of that is an option on the Microsoft console.

I have a dedicated firewall, a laptop, a server and a desktop, all running Linux. There are two computers that have versions of Microsoft OS's installed with GRUB handling the multi-boot but it has been months or years since they have been booted into a Microsoft OS. I partitioned my PS3's new hard drive (that I had just upgraded) with space for the Other OS option years ago and then never even attempted to install Linux on it, because there was no need for me to do so. I prefer my PS3 to run the PS3 OS because I am gaming on it and never needed a 5th box running Linux. The loss of the "Other OS" option didn't upset me in the slightest.

Sony does make some damn fine hardware. It is a huge company with an enormous product line-up. Are there some lemons in the line-up? Sure. But "evil" Sony is pushing the tech of audio/visual hardware into the future and making some exceptional products like the PS3 in the process.

Microsoft didn't see the need for HDMI, Blu-ray, user upgradable hard drives, built-in wifi and ethernet both. Sony did. Microsoft gamers are buying add-on kits, new versions of the console and specialty external drives to mod their console. Mine takes any USB thumb drive or external HD without complaint (as long as the filesystem is FAT - no e2fs or NTFS support). I don't have to switch disks to play a triple-A title from start to finish. Upgrading the hard drive took five minutes, a phillips screw driver and didn't void my warranty. A warranty I have never needed because that PS3 is a rock-solid work-horse, used for many thousands of hours and nary a glitch in all that time.

Sony is a gargantuan company and some arms of said giant have done some shit-tastic things. However, they innovate; they create new standards and new products that fit those standards.

As much as I fear the idea of "Trusted Computing" and worry that the day will come where internet access is only permitted on "Trusted Computing" certified devices, I do prefer to do my online gaming in a ecosystem that makes sure everyone is playing on a level field. That no one has auto-aim mods installed is much more valid a reason to do t

I'm not so sure this is wrong anymore

[MogNuts]

I don't know anymore. We know why they are doing this. To stop developers from thinking that the platform is dead to develop for because there will be rampant piracy.

And to stop cheaters. I'll tell you, I've just recently gotten into online shooters lately (MoH and COD:BO), and I'll tell you, I swear to god the amount of hacks and cheaters* just makes me not want to even bother.

I'm almost siding with Sony on this one. It's almost to the point that you have to buy as soon as it comes out and then you have a window of enjoyment of a month. Then it's worthless. To me, what's the point?

Re:IRC

[dc29A]

I don't beleive Sony are that dumb. A backdoor pretty much opens the PS3 not just to Sony but hackers and most importantly malware writers. PS3 botnet anyone?

I bought my PS3 dammit!

[onyxruby]

Is it just me, or I could swear that I 'bought' my ps3 and it said nothing about a cable box like rental on the box. Why is it so hard for Sony to understand that this is my property and to leave it well enough alone? If they want to arbitrarily execute code on other people's property it crosses the line to hacking and that's criminal to in most jurisdictions.

What they have done is no different that the cable company demanding root level access to your computer in order to go online. People would be outraged there, why should a game console (which is just a dedicated computer) be any different?

Bash.org

[definate]

Bash.org archiving reliable reporting sources since Wednesday February 02, @12:16AM.

Such as ...
Cthon98's expose on gullibility and technological literacy
erno's scandal on the misappropriated resources
CRCError's report on the abuses of power
DragonflyBlade21's critique on the human condition

... and of course entertainment news...
JonJonB's review of Harry Potter

Re:IRC

[JackDW]

In the absence of effective hardware security, this is the only way to stop people cheating in online games. This has become a big problem on the PS3 since the jailbreak enabled it.

On the PC, where there was never any hardware security to prevent cheating, publishers have been using the same technique for many years. Consider Blizzard Warden, Punkbuster, and Valve Anti Cheat. All of these allow the publisher - or their authorised agents - to download and run code on your machine when you connect to the online service.

Now Sony's platform is thoroughly broken, Sony has to adopt Punkbuster/VAC/Warden-style technology. It's either that, or suffer a mass exodus of players to other platforms which will be free of cheats.

Re:IRC

[erroneus]

You mean their track record for shoddy products, crappy product support, the previous rootkit installs and their close ties with the RIAA haven't been reason enough for you?

Re:Not a rootkit

[halcyon1234]

This isn't much different from Chrome autoupdating or Firefox blacklisting certain extensions.

It wouldn't be-- if Firefox removed the optional "Check for Updates" setting, changed your hosts.txt file and router's routing table, added no new features with the update, and would only show cached, offline pages until you submitted to the update.

So except for nearly everything being different, it's exactly the same.