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Daily Sony Hacking Occurs On Schedule

jjp9999 writes "LulzSec was compromised and a member of the group, Robert Cavanaugh, was arrested by the FBI on June 6. Meanwhile, LulzSec hacked Sony again, this time leaking the Sony Developer Network source code through file sharing websites."

235 of 353 comments (clear)

  1. Sounds like they're got inside access by GodfatherofSoul · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Not a network guy, but if they're repeating these hacks so quickly and with such regularity I imagine their backdoor is still up.

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    1. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by NoSleepDemon · · Score: 5, Funny

      I think Sony's chief failure in this whole incident is that they believe their customers like to take it in the back-door as frequently and as messily as they do.

    2. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by MozeeToby · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Maybe you didn't read the earlier articles about just how horrible Sony's security setup is. Here's a hint: It's every bit bad enough that a dedicated group could find a different way into the system every day for weeks on end.

    3. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Gravatron · · Score: 1

      It's not the same system though. they are hacking different departments, who obviously don't have any sort of centralized network authority. I don't think they have been able to hit the same department twice.

    4. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      Maybe you didn't read the earlier articles about just how horrible Sony's security setup is. Here's a hint: It's every bit bad enough that a dedicated group could find a different way into the system every day for weeks on end.

      Yes, but think how much money they saved on IT!

    5. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by tripleevenfall · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Well, no, I think this is one of the few times that the "terrorists", so to speak, actually won.

      LulzSec said they would do this as revenge for Sony taking legal action against someone for jailbreaking the PS3. LulzSec has successfully cost Sony far, far more than jailbreaking ever would have.

    6. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by TubeSteak · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Maybe you didn't read the earlier articles about just how horrible Sony's security setup is. Here's a hint: It's every bit bad enough that a dedicated group could find a different way into the system every day for weeks on end.

      I don't think you're doing anyone a favor when you present Sony as a monolithic corporation.
      It's not as simple as Sony vetting one security setup and replicating it across all websites tagged as Sony.
      Sony is made of of endless domestic and international subcorporations, each with its own (poor) security setup.

      At least these hacks are a return to the previous trend of defacements, revenge, and lulz,
      as opposed to the last few years of organized crime, ID theft, and renting out botnets.

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    7. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by History's+Coming+To · · Score: 2

      Either that or they sold something useful to the biggest geeks in the world and then took it away, but that would be daft.

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    8. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by _KiTA_ · · Score: 1

      Not a network guy, but if they're repeating these hacks so quickly and with such regularity I imagine their backdoor is still up.

      Nope, you're giving Sony too much credit. This is a basic SQL Injection Hack, one that every one of Sony's servers are vulnerable to and that they still haven't patched.

    9. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by DarthBart · · Score: 1

      That'll work well. I know I was ready to return my PS3 to Sony accompanied by select choices from my cat's litterbox if they didn't get their shit fixed soon. I wonder how many ps3s wound up at a pawn shop to finance the purchase of an Xbox.

    10. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Darinbob · · Score: 2

      This is an important point. People seem to defend these actions because they're demonstrating security holes. On the contrary this group did not set out to expose security holes but instead were intent on causing disruption. They're not doing this out of any higher sense of moral values. It's bad guys vs bad guys.

    11. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Yvanhoe · · Score: 2

      That is the nasty look of revenge. Sony unfairly used its weight against an innocent person, knowing very well that an individual cannot stand in front of an army of lawyers, and these hackers unfairly attack Sony causing as much disruption as they can. Two wrongs do not make a good, but this was not totally uncalled for. I can't help to see a bit of Robin Hood spirit there : "Trying to bankrupt someone to win in tribunal ? Let's let that cause you some comparable financial damages as well".

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    12. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by rbollinger · · Score: 2

      Not to crush your Robin Hood hero imagery, but it looks like these guys really are just thugs.

      http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-20068939-245/exclusive-ceo-says-hackers-tried-to-extort-data-money

    13. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Darinbob · · Score: 2

      You don't become Robin Hood merely by stealing from rich people. The Robin Hood legend is about the robbers who were different.

      Lulzsec isn't showing themselves to be different, they've got no political manifesto, they're not righting wrongs, they're not pointing out injustices that the world is blind to, they're not influencing the views of the masses, etc.

    14. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      so they are a poorly organised along with being a clueless gang of fucktards! thanks for clearing that up

    15. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by TubeSteak · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Well, no, I think this is one of the few times that the "terrorists", so to speak, actually won.

      10 years ago no one would have used the word "terrorists" (in quotations or otherwise) to describe straight forward black hat hacking.

      There are at least a hundred definitions of "terrorism" and they all include violence or the threat of violence.
      There's no violence here.

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    16. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by tripleevenfall · · Score: 1

      No violence, but there was some intended allusion to the ever typical THE TERRORISTS HAVE WON type of bleat.

    17. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by ShakaUVM · · Score: 1

      >>There are at least a hundred definitions of "terrorism" and they all include violence or the threat of violence.

      They certainly spread terror among all the Call of Duty players - my cheevos!!! NOOOOOOOOOO!!!! (Ok, well, they're trophies on the PS3, but still.)

      They spread terror at Sony - let's hope their president gets axed for his ridiculous persecution of GeoHot, and his subpoenaing of all the donors to his legal fund.

      But yeah, "terrorists" is a bit of an extreme label. Maybe "bullies" would apply better. To both sides.

    18. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by commandermonkey · · Score: 4, Interesting
      One of the few times? Seriously??

      Can you name one "terrorist" attack that hasn't been severly one sided in terms of cost?
      • Oklahoma city - for less than $5k there was 82.5Million in investigative cost alone
      • 9/11 -4 Planes, Several buildings, more expensive airport security, loss of jobs, etc have been estimated at over 2 trillion. +10 years of expensive war in Afghanistan
      • Anthrax Attacks - for the cost of 7 letters we got a clean up that the FBI put over 1billion and the war in Iraq
      • Liquid bombers - didn't even happen and we got more security theater and still have restrictions on liquids
      • Times square bomber - unsuccessful attack that got politically elites talking about suspending Miranda
      • Underwear bomb - Super expensive scanners and more security theater.

      Seriously, what "terrorist" attack in the last 10 years were you thinking of that hasn't caused a serous disproportionate response? Why do you think there seem to be more attacks in the last few years? For every couple thousand spent blowing, or attempting to blow, something up we spend hundreds or millions/billions/trillions reacting to it and every few large attacks causes the US to give away more of the "freedom(s)" that the terrorists hate. Over the last decade

      the "terrorists", so to speak, [have] won.

    19. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Nethemas+the+Great · · Score: 1

      Perhaps you should stop being the stupid one. Clearly the legal system is not a suitable venue for redress. What individual could finance a legal team equal or better to the corporations? Who says that the laws are not favoring producers over consumers? I think you know which is true. So clearly the political system is not a suitable venue for redress. I wonder what would be the suitable venue... those causing the problem perhaps?

      --
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    20. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Omnifarious · · Score: 1

      Then sue them.

      I believe that's been tried already, and the suit was tossed out.

    21. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by alcourt · · Score: 1

      Security culture is something that either is present in a large organization, or it isn't. The evidence suggests that Sony did not take security seriously in its projects until the series of attacks. Once that culture of insecurity is present, it takes years to undo. Think about how long it has taken Microsoft to shed even part of their image of insecurity.

      Projects often need to be rewritten from the ground up to actually permit something remotely resembling security. Attackers are using far more sophisticated techniques, and Sony, probably like many other large companies, appears to have gotten stuck with an attitude about security stuck in the late 1980s.

      I don't seriously expect Sony to truly recover for at least eight more months, and that's assuming a serious shift in their security culture. If you want to be an observer, look for updates to security advisories from major audit and assessment organizations (e.g. PCI). That will give a clue as to what really went wrong on a fundamental level.

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    22. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Pseudonym+Authority · · Score: 2

      exclusive-ceo-says-hackers-tried-to-extort-data-money

      ceo-says-hackers-tried-to-extort-data-money

      ceo-says-hackers

      ceo-says

      ceo-says

      Hmmm, I question the credibility of that.

    23. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Pseudonym+Authority · · Score: 1

      That's some nice shilling. Are they paying you, or are you just that much of a crazed fanboi that you actually believe all that bullshit?

    24. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Pseudonym+Authority · · Score: 1

      Bawww, are you upset that they didn't pick your favorite cause to crusade for?

    25. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by c0lo · · Score: 1

      He released trade secretmaterial to the public.

      FTFY. Thanks God, one cannot copyright encryption keys.

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    26. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by blackraven14250 · · Score: 1

      They don't all include violence. They do include inducing fear in people to force them to act in a certain manner, though.

    27. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by m0fu · · Score: 1

      "cyber terrorists" .... on the information superhighway

    28. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Vancorps · · Score: 1

      The USAF would like to have a word with you, many many many people used OtherOS and do miss it to this day. It was a grab by Sony for more revenue since people using otherOS weren't usually game players so they didn't want to sell the PS3 as a loss leader to people who wouldn't buy games.

    29. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by chaboud · · Score: 1

      one cannot copyright encryption keys yet ...

      FTFY.

    30. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Zancarius · · Score: 1

      Not to crush your Robin Hood hero imagery, but it looks like these guys really are just thugs.

      Sure they are. I don't agree with what they're doing, after all there's far better ways to go after a corporation like Sony without causing monetary damage.

      On the other hand, I certainly don't feel any remorse for Sony either. Their product quality control has really gone downhill in recent years, and repeat DMCA take down notices (Sony's BMG wing, anyway) to various channels I follow on Youtube kind of leads me to think these immortal words: You reap what you sow. And that's to say nothing of the various things they've done in the recent past.

      Again, I don't think it's right, but I can't say I feel sorry for Sony, either. I'd imagine there's a lot of people who feel this way, too.

      --
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    31. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by nanospook · · Score: 1

      Maybe their backdoor is undocumented and they can't find it? :P

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    32. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by RoFLKOPTr · · Score: 1

      Two wrongs do not make a good, but this was not totally uncalled for.

      You don't "get back" at a corporation by stealing and releasing the personal information of tens of thousands of their customers. Regardless of your opinions about Sony, LulzSec are complete douchebags and deserve to be made Bubba's bitch posse in prison.

    33. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Stan92057 · · Score: 1

      It was definitely uncalled for. Its not there business to punish anyone thats for the law to do. And the only true people hurt here are Sony's customers. So they accomplished nothing except for getting Sony to fix there security holes and make them" The crybaby hackers" look like nothing more then spoiled crybaby's kicking and screaming because they didn't get there own way. I really hope they get cought and spend tons of time in jail geting butt F08988ed by Bubba

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    34. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      So thugs beating up thugs, why should I not break out the popcorn and enjoy it?

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    35. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Opportunist · · Score: 2

      Well, first of all it would be the CSOs or more specifically the CISOs job, and I bet he's currently getting very little sleep. But allow me to explain just why this could happen, and why the CISO "didn't do his job". I'm fairly sure the poor guy is now getting to feel the fallout of something that he couldn't even have done any better. Since I have his job (in another rather large company), I can only assume what creek he's stuck in, without the budget for paddles.

      First of all, he most likely has to beg, steal and borrow whatever budget he had in the first place. Security is notoriously underfunded in every company, and I seriously doubt that it's any different with Sony. The reason for this is very simple: Security produces no revenue. It is the first thing that gets axed when the revenue starts to shrink since it is the one aspect the shareholders and rating agencies will not notice. Unless there's an attack, of course. It can be compared to an insurance, which is also just an expense until disaster strikes and the insurance can be claimed. How many people first of all cash in their life insurance the moment they need money and cancel all their health and retirement insurances to cut costs? It's not different with companies. You trade expense for risk, and since your rating and shareholder value is not affected by risk but by expense... well, do the math.

      Also, it highly depends on the reporting structure of the company. I do not know the structure Sony uses, but essentially there are three possible people the CISO could report to: CIO, CEO or directly to the board (all assuming the CISO an CSO position is rolled into one, which is likely in this setup). Of course, reporting to the board and hence having their ear would be very beneficial, I just doubt that he has that much luck. CEO works too, but the worst that could happen to a CSO is to be under the CIO and hence dependent on him for his budget. You may rest assured that he'll be stuck with the leftovers, whatever is left after every "productive" group is funded will be his budget. That's usually not too much.

      So what the CISO most likely did is build the best security system he could with his limited funds. Of course there was no money for audits or security consultations, and even the best informed and knowledgeable CISO suffers from Schneier's law: Any person can invent a security system so clever that he or she can't imagine a way of breaking it. No matter how good you are, you need an outsider to test your defenses to make sure that everything is as it should be. Now, I'm fairly sure he didn't have the money to do just that. Well, LulzSec did it for him now.

      So shit hits fan. What happens now? Well, the sensible thing, and something said CISO certainly recommended, is to shut down and find out what happened. Initially, that is what was done. And I am fairly convinced that he did what he could to beg, steal and borrow so he could get some consultants and auditors on board to find the leak and seal it. This takes time. And most of all, money. And even with this breach right there, I'm not too convinced that the money faucet was turned on for him. OTOH, he had a lot of time pressure in his back to get the services back online, preferably immediately. There is now very little you can actually DO in just one week, you certainly cannot fix the mistakes of years of neglect.

      That guy had no chance to avoid or clean up this mess. But rest assured that he'll be fired for it.

      --
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    36. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Evtim · · Score: 1

      I wonder whether the terrorists considered that the world of finance had changed. How can you bankrupt a country that prints its money on a whim?

      That and another thing is everything is business today. Everything must be profitable. Ergo it is good for the economy to have more of everything since everything is profitable. Including more sick people, more crime, more terrorism and more wars.

      How much more it has to be repeated that peace, health and happiness are not as profitable as war, illness and misery. Wake up, world! Hello.... can anyone hear me?!

    37. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Patch86 · · Score: 1

      I wonder whether the terrorists considered that the world of finance had changed. How can you bankrupt a country that prints its money on a whim?

      See Zimbabwe, North Korea, Iceland, Ireland, Greece...

    38. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by c0mpliant · · Score: 1

      I'm glad someone beat me to that point. Too many people take EVERYTHING that Sony put out as gospel when it should be treated more like gossip. They lied to us enough during the whole saga to know their word is not to be trusted

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    39. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by justforgetme · · Score: 1

      The Robin Hood legend is about the robbers who were different.

      The Robin Hood legend is about individuals trying to punish tyrany

      LulzSec is a group of men who try to punish a TBTF company.

      As far as I know LulzSec hasn't showed any interest in getting rich from the whole op. They may as well have a lot of valuable information but how they use it is the key factor here.

      So yes, you can relate them. If you should relate them is a matter of personal choice.

      BTW: I think that the Sheriff of Nottingham also would have tried to portrait the actions of Robin Hood as thugish and terroristy...

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    40. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Yvanhoe · · Score: 1

      Actually this email was provided by lulzboat to show that this employee (who is not the CEO of anything) of a government contracting firm was ready to give access to sensitive data and to a bot network in exchange of not publicizing the leak.

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    41. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by bloodhawk · · Score: 1

      What you are describing is a massive failure on sony's part still. I work for a massive corporations IT that has literally hundreds of departments and subcorporations both foreign and domestic, Every one of them has no choice but to submit to the head corporations IT security standard, it is not an option regardless of how independent they are. That is how most normal corporations work, if sony doesn't then they deserve everything they get.

    42. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Yvanhoe · · Score: 1

      You should look at Sony stocks prices since the beginning of the attacks. They have been badly hurt.

      --
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    43. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by rohan972 · · Score: 1

      The Robin Hood legend is about the robbers who were different.

      The Robin Hood legend is about individuals trying to punish tyrany

      The Robin Hood legend is about the supporters of one tyrant (Richard the Lionheart) opposing the rise of a different tyrant (his brother John) while the first tyrant was off waging a "holy war". I'm sure the strategy of gaining popular support by giving the money of the rulers to the poor ceased quickly when the first tyrant was restored to power.

    44. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Evtim · · Score: 1

      OK, I wanted to avoid flame war, but what I actually wanted to say was "I wonder whether the terrorists considered that the world of finance had changed. How can you bankrupt a country that prints its money on a whim and holds the rest of the world at gunpoint". Meaning the USA. Any other country would default but not the US because of its unique position of power in the world.

    45. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Well if the state won't protect you then what are you gonna do? Sony decides to rob you of features you paid for and the right to do with your own property what you like, and apparently this circumvention of the law is not going to be prosecuted.

      Just like in real life non-violent protest doesn't work. Corporations and governments simply ignore you. 2 million marched against invading Iraq and it had no effect, but once people started rioting over the Poll Tax it got dropped. There are protests almost every day in London and they never get any media attention unless something gets smashed up.

      When no-one listens to the people then the people have to have a revolution, and that means law breaking and violence. If Sony was being forced to return the OtherOS feature and allow jailbreaking I bet no-one would be hacking them, at least not purely for the lulz.

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    46. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Rogerborg · · Score: 1

      To emphasise that, in 2002 Saddam Hussein stopped accepting US $$$ for Iraqi oil. 6 months later, he was hiding in a hole in the ground while his country burned down around him. If you're still asking "Why?", you really don't have to look any further than that.

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    47. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by c0mpliant · · Score: 1

      Hate to burst your bubble, but the Irish and the Greek can't print their own money. They use the Euro which is controlled and printed centrally by the EU. What happened in Greece was rolling over debt constantly until it became so massive that it nearly crippled the economy and what happened in Ireland was mainly based on Irish banks giving loans (backed by the major European banks) for property which was staggeringly over priced and then when those prices came back to normal there was MASSIVE negative equity. The government then took on the debt of the banks which crippled the economy. Sure the Irish government was running a deficit, but only in the last 4 years and no where near as bad as the Greeks. Icelands problem was similar to the Irish situation but they had much more financial control and independence to be able to handle the situation better.

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    48. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Xest · · Score: 1

      10 years ago the Jolly Rogers cookbook was something you'd carry around on a floppy because it was cool with no intention of ever really trying any of it, video of donkey trying to mount a man on your hard drive because it was pretty fucking funny, and a couple of random midi files you had lying around as jingles of certain tunes you liked for your old cell phone.

      Nowadays these 3 things would make you a terrorist sex offender pirate.

      How things change, and how the innocence of intrigue, amusement, and mild entertainment can now get you listed under some of the worst crimes going.

      What a sad 10 years the last 10 were, perhaps the darkest in Western history since the second world war I would argue.

    49. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Xest · · Score: 2

      "At least these hacks are a return to the previous trend of defacements, revenge, and lulz, as opposed to the last few years of organized crime, ID theft, and renting out botnets."

      I absolutely agree with this, for some years now I've been concerned that real hackers had disspeared, many grown up and moved on, others gone over to organised crime. That new kids entering the scene were either too scared by the police to try more harmless hacking and those that weren't just going for the money in the crime game.

      It was a concern because it's fundamentally the spirit that the internet was built on and is vital in keeping the internet free. I believe the encroachment of companies on the internet in the last decade trying to push for tough government restrictions on freedom is a result of a lack of backlash from hackers which was seen leading into the 90s. People like DVD Jon and the breaking of various other DRM regimes and such were rare examples where people were willing to step over into the grey area of legality to put consumer interest back in the forefront of the corporate onslaught against digital rights and freedoms.

      So yeah, I welcome this recent action, it's embarassing to a company that frankly deserves embarassment from it's rootkit stuff to it's RIAA activities, and it's government lobbying for reduced personal freedoms.

      Frankly, in the coming years I hope to see more of it. Between Wikileaks, the various Anonymous actions, the Arab spring, and so forth I sincerely hope this is a decade that will be as much about discontent of private citizens lashing back at their governments as the last decade was about governments and corporations controlling and restricting private citizens actions and movements, and castrating their long held freedoms.

    50. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      All good points, except I don't see what the anthrax attacks have to do with Iraq - I'd list that under 9/11.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    51. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      in 2002 Saddam Hussein stopped accepting US $$$ for Iraqi oil. 6 months later, he was hiding in a hole in the ground while his country burned down around him.

      Hah, brilliant...

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    52. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by MachineShedFred · · Score: 1

      Usually I'm all for a fight between bad guys and other bad guys, but in this particular case the collateral damage is rather high.

      It's like bad guys vs. bad guys, where the weaponry involved are 400kt nukes.

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    53. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Talderas · · Score: 1

      Robin Hood also didn't harm bystanders and innocents with his actions.

      --
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    54. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Ant+P. · · Score: 1

      Wake up, world! Hello.... can anyone hear me?!

      Probably not if you're using AT&T.

    55. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by commandermonkey · · Score: 1

      Maybe, I think the leading causes will be debated by historians for decades. Wired has a summary(wordpress link to the same story, after wireds part in Bradley Manning and their smear job of Bruce Ives I have a hard time sending traffic there) and a google search will pull open more debates and comments about the link between anthrax and the Iraq War.

      From what I remember about late 2001, the events of 9/11 were traumatic and confusing, but not really fear inspiring. It felt more like a one off, more similar to the Cole, embassy bombings or all the hijackings/bombings of planes in the decade before. Getting on a plane was scary for a few months, but that was about it. The anthrax was completely different.

      With the anthrax we had a few weeks of new reports that people were getting sick or dying. And unlike working in a fancy highrise in New York City, everyone gets the mail and everyone could be a potential victim. Anthrax brought about a sustained fear of terrorism where anyone could be a victim, and made people afraid that they could be the victim of WMD's that would kill, not a few thousand, but millions.

      I am sure the discussion as to the major cause of Iraq will continue for decades for many reasons least of which is probably not that the national science foundation doesn't accept the FBIs conclusions where the science is concerned, and that aside from Bruce Ives was creepy the anthrax investigation pointed back to government labs.

      tl;dr Powell didn't go before the security council with a toy plane but with a vial of anthrax.

    56. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by TangoMargarine · · Score: 1

      Its not there business to punish anyone

      HAHAHAHAHAHA Listen to yourself, dude. Like that's really gonna happen. *How* many articles have there been of Sony weaselling out of stuff?

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    57. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by ToxicBanjo · · Score: 1

      Terrorists only win when we let them win. The over-reaction of the world governments has made terrorism a viable way to affect change. When in reality the damage and death toll they usually cause is far less than the number of deaths caused by enjoying our freedoms, ie. driving your car.

      I grew up overseas on a military base and bomb scares were somewhat regular. I learned very early on that these people are cowards, and cowards are not to be pandered too, they are not to be validated by changing our way of life. As soon as we do that they have won.

      --
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    58. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by fuzznutz · · Score: 1

      AMEN Brother!

      30 years ago we were much less safe with the constant threat of Soviet nuclear annihilation on 15 minutes notice. Today we welcome gropes and nude photographs in the airport because we fear the Arab boogeyman and we pay for the privilege. You can be charged as a sex offender because you urinate outside and suddenly find yourself unable to find legal housing anywhere within some cities. There has been a sad decline in the public's value of freedom.

    59. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by idontgno · · Score: 1

      If you can watch at a safe distance, go nuts. However, if you're in proximity, you have to realize that whoever wins will be looking for their next victim, and you don't want their eyes to light on you as soon as they look up from their defeated opponent.

      --
      Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
    60. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Patch86 · · Score: 1

      Their currency was still fiat, and still could be printed by their central bank (they just shared a central bank with several other countries).

      When you get right down to it, the Eurozone is not much different to the USA (or "Dollarzone", if you like); 17 semi-autonomous member states (50 in the US), population of 330 million (310 million in the US), etc.. If the Eurozone could collapse (and if enough of its member states faced default it certainly could happen), so could the US.

      And my point still stands as far as Iceland in particular (advanced modern country with full control over its economy and its own fiat currency), and Zimbabwe and North Korea to a lesser extent (their economies were brought down by non-monetary forces; not terrorism obviously, but especially in North Korea's case it's "external enemies" on a grander scale). Could add inter-war Germany or the Soviet Union (both crippled by their economy, despite being able to "print money"), and dozens of smaller states that defaulted on their debts (Google "countries that have defaulted" for more).

      I'm not suggesting for even a moment that the US economy is going to collapse, and even less so that terrorists could bring down a country's economy; only pointing out that fiscally independent countries with fiat currencies can bankrupt, and being able to print your own money is no guarantee of staving bankruptcy or default away, as the GGP suggested.

    61. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by EdIII · · Score: 1

      I question the whole point of it.

      If you were a shop keeper that was already being pushed around and extorted from (Sony to its customers) how much do you really care when a mob turf war erupts and the Triads are attacking the Cosa Nostra?

      You're still in the same situation. Just worse, because now as an innocent bystander your shop is riddled with bullets because "Sony" just happened to be there.

      Sure there is a sense of justice in that the you get to see the guys that caused you so much pain dead or bleeding out on the floor, but that is all it is. A sense of justice or revenge.

      This does not change anything towards the positive for Sony customers. Sony will just fight back or defend itself, Lulzsec will just keep attacking, and the same ol' bullshit will continue, and probably get worse for Sony customers.

      Really think about it.... is Sony going to ease up and give back the OtherOS and open their platform up? Or they going to put even more crap in the next update in their cold war with the "hackers"?

      The best solution? It requires some resolve, but the best solution is to take your PS3, open it up, and destroy the CELL processor in it and then throw it on to the nearest Sony held property. Sony losing over half its market share in 30 days might be what it takes to finally make them *consider* the consumer's position on rightful property ownership, reasonable copyrights, privacy, etc.

      None of that will happen.

      PS3 customers will continue to bitch, gripe, and whine about how they are getting shafted by Sony.
      PS3 customers will continue to be angry at different people and targets on a daily basis because their services are impacted.
      Sony will continue to stubbornly defend the line against the attackers and only get more ruthless with their resources.
      Lulzsec and other such like minded "organizations" (criminals or not) will continue to attack Sony for revenge, extortion, or just plain laughs.

      Nothing good is happening here.

    62. Re:Sounds like they're got inside access by Stan92057 · · Score: 1

      They will come back. What makes you think they wont?? People are going to stop using there PS3? LOL not likely i sure havent.Stocks are long term and every company has good years and bad years this is a bad year but it was caused by criminals who had NO Business doing what they did.

      --
      Jack of all trades,master of none
  2. I almost feel sorry for Sony by v1 · · Score: 4, Funny

    no wait, I don't. Get me some popcorn, this is a good show.

    --
    I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
    1. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by elrous0 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I just imagine someone hacking their presentation at E3 while they're live onstage. That would be some serious lulz.

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    2. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Shhh! You'll tip them off to our plan, fool!

    3. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by theshowmecanuck · · Score: 2

      Wouldn't it be ironic if they used a root kit? Or would that be poetic justice?

      --
      -- I ignore anonymous replies to my comments and postings.
    4. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by VortexCortex · · Score: 1

      Wouldn't it be ironic if they used a root kit? Or would that be poetic justice?

      it would be ironic if the rootkit was already in place before lulzsec came along...

      I think it would be ironic if it was made of iron...

    5. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by SmurfButcher+Bob · · Score: 1

      That'd actually be good news for Lulzsec, since if any of them DO get convicted... they can simply offer a pair of $1 iTunes gift certificates as restitution.

      --

      help me i've cloned myself and can't remember which one I am

    6. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by Patch86 · · Score: 1

      Sounds like steady work to me. From the top?

    7. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by lrobert98 · · Score: 1

      I tried watching that presentation live online. After a few minutes of "Loading..." every few seconds I gave up. People trying to watch via Playstation Home were reporting that they were not even able to log in because the system was so overloaded. Sony doesn't really need any help from outside groups to screw things up. They're quite capable on their own.

    8. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by mwkorver · · Score: 1
      I actually do feel sorry.

      I grew up Tokyo during the 60s and 70s when Sony was changing the world with cool new gadgets. My Dad told me the same story a zillion times about how Morita ( co-founder of Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo now SONY ) came by and borrowed a Webcor tape deck ( US made reel-to-reel ) from one of his colleagues, then a year later came out with their own model. aaah I've now told it again... These guys with their small store in a factory building somewhere in Gotanda where total hardware hackers. I still remember my Sony Walkman WM-D6C Professional I had in the 80s. Nobody else was making affordable tech like that back then.

      And we all know that SONY totally missed the boat with the PSP. SOO much potential lost in the land of DRM. Talk about pissing off a legion of users.

      I think the original founders of SONY would have been appalled by what's going on now. They would have understood that hacking is intrinsic to the process of any good piece of hardware. Because thats exactly how they got started.

    9. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by v1 · · Score: 1

      Successful businesses rarely care about their roots, because that's not where the money is. (or where they think it is, anyway)

      Unless there's obvious profit in it, a business has no reason to "return to its roots", or to do anything for the people whose heads they have climbed over to get where they are. One you're on top, there's no reason to care about those below you where you came from.

      --
      I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
    10. Re:I almost feel sorry for Sony by Lanteran · · Score: 1

      and if it was accidentally installed by a Sony employee trying to listen to music at work.

      --
      "People don't want to learn linux" hasn't been a valid excuse since '03.
  3. I lost track by joeflies · · Score: 1

    so how does any of this relate to removing OtherOS anymore?

    1. Re:I lost track by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      so how does any of this relate to removing OtherOS anymore?

      You don't let people hack your consoles, they find something else to hack. Idle hands and all that. :)

    2. Re:I lost track by shadowfaxcrx · · Score: 1

      At this point it's the schoolyard bully syndrome. One bully beats up the rich kid and suddenly 6 others run over to kick him in the head while he's on the ground. It's debatable whether any of the new arrivals give a damn about the purported causes of the original hack. Sony's on the ropes from a security standpoint, and it sure is fun to keep punching.

      That said, I have difficulty mustering up much sympathy for Sony, because it is possible to secure a network so that it is not as wildly hackable as Sony's apparently is. Lockheed proved that a couple weeks ago when hackers who were doubtless employed by foreign governments tried to get in to their systems, and got absolutely nothing. That one of the Sony hacks (I've forgotten which one now - I can't keep them all straight anymore) was apparently pulled off by entering code into a database field is pretty clear evidence that Sony isn't taking security very seriously.

      In my opinion, companies that request and store customer data which could lead to identity theft should be required by law to properly protect that data. And if they can't do it, they should be prohibited by law from having a business presence in this country for a set amount of time. You want my credit card number, you'd better damn well put it in a (virtual) hardened vault and not let anyone get to it.

      --
      "I disagree with you" does not equal "flamebait."
    3. Re:I lost track by creat3d · · Score: 1

      This isn't a schoolyard, the 6 other kids know full well who Sony is. As for being prohibited by law to do business if they can't handle personal information, obviously the kids are more effective than the judicial system, in this particular case.

      --
      Grammar nazis are to this community what excrements are to gold.
    4. Re:I lost track by satoshi1 · · Score: 1

      Except it's really easy for people to avoid Sony's bullying. All they have to do is not involve themselves in Sony products or services. Ever. That is so easy.

    5. Re:I lost track by CrazyDuke · · Score: 1

      Meh. This is just my two-cents; but, it's more like the sociopaths, the psychopaths, and their respectively loyal toadies are having a little turf war. They're both bullies, one just makes up new rules, and the other breaks them. They both appeal to pity and victim-hood to solicit implicit permission to continue and to recruit new pawns for their destructive little game of domination.

      I am more concerned what they are going to do to the rest of us when they get through having it out with each other. Usually the psychopaths win as they tend to be better at rallying large numbers of pawns, and importantly, patrons.

      --
      Any sufficiently advanced influence is indistinguishable from control.
    6. Re:I lost track by taucross · · Score: 1

      Friends don't let friends buy Sony.

      --
      "In the absence of the ability to establish the attribute of truth they tried to establish the noble attributes."
    7. Re:I lost track by shadowfaxcrx · · Score: 1

      More effective? How do you figure? Now the kids have peoples' credit cards, and a whole shitload of people have to get new cards and take other steps to avoid being wiped out. These dipshits are punishing Sony's customers more than Sony.

      --
      "I disagree with you" does not equal "flamebait."
    8. Re:I lost track by creat3d · · Score: 1

      That's a strong deterrent to doing business with Sony. Ah who am I kidding, it won't change anything.

      --
      Grammar nazis are to this community what excrements are to gold.
    9. Re:I lost track by Fluffeh · · Score: 1

      Sort of like this utter classic example from here in Australia a little while back. Bully keeps picking on some kid (seriously, look at the size difference - what is the bully thinking will eventually happen?!?) and well... I don't want to spoil the outcome thirsty seconds later. But it is UTTER GOLD.

      --
      Moved to http://soylentnews.org/. You are invited to join us too!
    10. Re:I lost track by arose · · Score: 1

      I think you mean "don't dodge taxes if you are not ready to keep the needed features around".

      --
      Analogies don't equal equalities, they are merely somewhat analogous.
    11. Re:I lost track by theArtificial · · Score: 1

      Way to demonize the OSS community by associating them with Lulzsec. I'm not a staunch supporter of OSS nor do I condone the actions taken against Sony. The OtherOS feature was implemented in a failed effort to have the PS3 classified as a computer and not a console for reduced import fees in certain European countries. After the effort failed it appears Sony ended support for OtherOS. This has nothing to do with nice, only dollars. It's the information age, so there's no excuse for not having your information straight.

      --
      Man blir trött av att gå och göra ingenting.
    12. Re:I lost track by c-reus · · Score: 1

      Just ignore them and hope they go away.

      I agree. If Sony had completely ignored the PS3 hacks, none of this would have happened (at least in my opinion).

    13. Re:I lost track by hedwards · · Score: 1

      That's the wrong message. The right message is to not go around vandalizing people's fucking property and expecting to hide behind your wall of lawyers. I don't personally know of any reason why this is related to the removal of the OtherOS feature, other than the obvious people getting pissed about Sony vandalizing their gear and paying attention to anybody that's going to take shots at Sony.

    14. Re:I lost track by shadowfaxcrx · · Score: 1

      Exactly. At best it'll get people who play Sony's crappy MMO's or on PSN to buy gift cards at Walmart instead of giving Sony their credit card directly. Sony still gets the money, and their customers get screwed and inconvenienced whenever they want to buy something.

      --
      "I disagree with you" does not equal "flamebait."
  4. TFA Is Sparse On Information by WrongSizeGlass · · Score: 4, Informative

    TFA doesn't tell us much except that Sony got hacked and some guy got arrested. The summary sums up the whole thing.

    1. Re:TFA Is Sparse On Information by Nrrqshrr · · Score: 5, Funny

      For once the summary is good enough. We can't complain.

    2. Re:TFA Is Sparse On Information by TheGothicGuardian · · Score: 2

      As someone who enjoys reading articles, I found the summary to be too good.

    3. Re:TFA Is Sparse On Information by Magada · · Score: 1

      So I'm supposed to believe that you RTFA? Are you new here, or what?

      --
      Something bad is coming when people are suddenly anxious to tell the truth.
  5. Arrested by Hatta · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Guess the seven proxies weren't enough.

    How did this arrest go down? This is clearly a more interesting development then yet another Sony hack. Hopefully there will be more information forthcoming.

    --
    Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
    1. Re:Arrested by Delgul · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Might be they arrested one of the seven proxies? ;-)

    2. Re:Arrested by Threni · · Score: 1

      If I were the FBI I'd have plenty of servers, probably install people at ISPs tracing absolutely all traffic, run TOR exit nodes, run proxies etc.

    3. Re:Arrested by melikamp · · Score: 1

      Assuming that this is even a right guy (that is, someone directly responsible for one of the high-profile Sony hacks, and not some schmo who thought that Windows 7 and WEP is all security he needed), there are, probably, only two or three human proxies between him and FBI. The law enforcement may be 10 years behind in technology, but when it comes to time-tested methods involving confidential informants, they must be fucking scary.

    4. Re:Arrested by dachshund · · Score: 1

      How did this arrest go down? This is clearly a more interesting development then yet another Sony hack. Hopefully there will be more information forthcoming.

      Via the same mechanism every other arrest in this area goes down: traditional investigative work. I.e., he bragged, someone ratted.

    5. Re:Arrested by Anrego · · Score: 1

      My thoughts _exactly_.

      I don't give a shit about the hack, I want to find out about the arrest! Chances are we won't, and probably for good reasons, but this is good news!

      I suspect they'll probably get a lot of info out of this guy. One thing to be tough anonymously over the internet ... in a room with a bunch of people basically telling you you're going to spend the rest of your life getting ass-raped in prison is a whole different story.

    6. Re:Arrested by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      Yeah I'd be surprised if the FBI wasn't replicating the honeypot attack on Tor. Run Tor exit nodes with crazy-high bandwidth and sniff the huge amount of traffic that comes through. They could pick up a cookie or something that could identify the person on the other end. That's why you don't pass anything unencrypted over Tor that you don't want anyone else to see, and you always use private browsing w/ flash cookie & html5 storage control and geolocation disabled, or ideally a fresh-booted LiveCD in a VM.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    7. Re:Arrested by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      Oh and I forgot, use Perspectives to prevent SSL MITM.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    8. Re:Arrested by Syberz · · Score: 1

      Well, it would seem that no arrest actually took place... Lulzsec don't know who the guy mentioned is and the FBI themselves said that they didn't arrest anyone.

      --
      ~Syberz
  6. Robert Cavanaugh (Not Apart of Lulzsec) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    This kid isn't apart of LulzSec, he was in the process of being recruited. As you can see his arrest as no effect on LulzSec.

    1. Re:Robert Cavanaugh (Not Apart of Lulzsec) by mirix · · Score: 4, Funny

      That would mean he is apart of lulzsec - not that that makes him a part of it, or anything like that.

      --
      Sent from my PDP-11
    2. Re:Robert Cavanaugh (Not Apart of Lulzsec) by mangu · · Score: 1

      That would mean he is apart of lulzsec - not that that makes him a part of it, or anything like that.

      That's alot like when people join two separate words together. I feel kinda pissed off about it.

    3. Re:Robert Cavanaugh (Not Apart of Lulzsec) by euroq · · Score: 1

      That would mean he is apart of lulzsec - not that that makes him a part of it, or anything like that.

      apart from lulzsec

      --
      Just because the U.S. is a republic does not mean it is not a democracy. Democracy/republic are not mutually exclusive.
    4. Re:Robert Cavanaugh (Not Apart of Lulzsec) by theArtificial · · Score: 1

      That's alot like when people join two separate words together. I feel kinda pissed off about it.

      Are you pissed off a lot? ;)

      --
      Man blir trött av att gå och göra ingenting.
    5. Re:Robert Cavanaugh (Not Apart of Lulzsec) by niteshifter · · Score: 1

      Are you pissed off a lot? ;)

      I once pissed off a lot, onto the sidewalk.

      Just for the lulz of it.

  7. Story innacurate according to the group by Capeman · · Score: 5, Informative

    The posted details here: http://pastebin.com/yut4P6qN

    1. Re:Story innacurate according to the group by h4rr4r · · Score: 1

      Parent is not goatse. Parent link appears to not contain any horrible images.

    2. Re:Story innacurate according to the group by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Ascii goatse isn't that bad anyways.

    3. Re:Story innacurate according to the group by BlueScreenO'Life · · Score: 1

      Speak for yourself, I loathe those crappy facebook/twitter icons.

  8. Bad Porn by MonsterTrimble · · Score: 1

    I'm not sure which is more frightening - the fact these guys backdoor Sony repeatedly or that Sony doesn't seem to want to stop them.

    For the record:
    1) Yes, I am aware of the double entendres.
    2) No, I do not believe rape is funny.
    3) No, I am not homophobic.

    --
    I call it 'The Aristocrats'
    1. Re:Bad Porn by creat3d · · Score: 2

      I beg to disagree. Rape jokes concerning Sony ARE funny.

      --
      Grammar nazis are to this community what excrements are to gold.
    2. Re:Bad Porn by Gravatron · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Sony isn't just one company, it's more like a holding group. The different parts rarely seem to talk to each other, and most likely have no centralized network authority. Saying 'Sony was hacked again' isn't really accurate, it's 'a division/company belonging to the sony group was hacked'. I don't believe they have been successful in hitting the same target twice.

    3. Re:Bad Porn by xMrFishx · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Although it also comes with the downside of being a holding group, umbrella naming. To Average Joe (via the sensationalist media), Sony X and Sony Y are the same thing. As it all masquerades under the name Sony, hacking Sony Music and Sony TV is essentially the same thing, even if, to the rest of us, it isn't. Ultimately though, I find the whole thing very funny and am rather enjoying watching.

    4. Re:Bad Porn by JumperCable · · Score: 1

      For the record:
      [snip]
      3) No, I am not homophobic.

      ...so, how about a date this Friday night?

    5. Re:Bad Porn by Anrego · · Score: 1

      It got less funny when they posted user details on the net.

      You want to stab at Sony, go for it... but why punish innocent users.

    6. Re:Bad Porn by DMUTPeregrine · · Score: 1

      Because they knowingly did business with Sony. Since Sony has been a known "evil" since at least the 2005 CD rootkit doing business with them is unethical and removes the shield of "innocence" from their enablers.

      --
      Not a sentence!
    7. Re:Bad Porn by Anrego · · Score: 1

      Oh good grief.

      Aside from a relatively small group of geeks, most people wouldn't know what the hell you were talking about if you said "Sony root kit".

      And you'd have to be pretty damn obsessive to not do business with companies who have ever done evil. Companies most people do business with on a regular basis have done far, far worse.

    8. Re:Bad Porn by hedwards · · Score: 1

      I'm personally having a hard time remembering why I'm supposed to be morally outraged by the haxxoring of the various Sony sites. Ultimately, I wonder how long this goes on before the lulz dry up.

    9. Re:Bad Porn by newtype+hack · · Score: 1

      I agree with this one. It's not like every other corporation (ISPs, cell providers) aren't out there pulling the same sort of crap. I don't care how much you hate a company, the customers don't deserve to have the next 15 years of their lives completely destroyed because some brat kids (yes, kids, i don't care how old they actually may be) thought it would be funny and nifty. Honestly their whole catalog of "internet speak" and memes is just annoying. Every time I see somebody say "for the lulz" it makes me want to punch the next person with a guy fawkes mask in the testicles.

    10. Re:Bad Porn by MonsterTrimble · · Score: 1

      Sure. Where?

      --
      I call it 'The Aristocrats'
    11. Re:Bad Porn by DMUTPeregrine · · Score: 1

      Oh, I agree totally. We can't even tell if the users bought products before that time & the info was still stored, and most of it doesn't expire. I was just trying to explain the "blame the user" mindset that's out there. Should have made it clearer.

      --
      Not a sentence!
  9. poor, silly sony by eyenot · · Score: 1

    Don't they realize they would gain much more by apologizing for and desisting against GeoHot than they would be trying to sentimentally appease investors who are already losing their asses due to Sony's complete unawareness of ALL simple, cultural matters related to information and security? All they've done this whole episode is show their complete idiocy: in failing to understand the proper and graceful way to accept having a device defeated by a hacker; failing to understand that hackers are serious about their claims and abilities; failing to understand most of the underlying principles not only of technology being used but information theory itself and pertinent concepts like retention of information and where it applies to real-world security models such as trust-based networks. It seems nobody these days in any position of much worth or prominence has even a clue about the workings and mechanisms of governance, of security, of infrastructure, any of it. Sony is just the epitome of what the generations have come down to and how very little they're capable of maintaining rational thought and in-the-now presence. This disgraceful, wretched form of half-witted aggression against normal, common people has become pandemic amongst those wherein whom political and economic power is found consolidated, and their very lowbrow and disdainful perception of what the average human being constitutes in their need and capability is almost villain like. There are very few people amongst either the completely unaffected (yet exposed to the story via media) and those directly affected (Sony's clientele and consumer-base) who are rooting for the company in these recent matters, meanwhile, the company seeks to appease investors instead of the common person or their clientele, showing almost complete apathy towards those who have proffered substantial sums for broken-down old "services". This also goes to show you what the common person is reduced to in terms of buyer awareness and consumer savvy, that this decrepit network -- apparently run by people barely associated with the concepts involved beyond marketing and financing -- is one of the widest-selling entertainment services in the modern world. And yet Sony still manages to fail to find a friend in the world! Bewildering!

    --
    "Stratigraphically the origin of agriculture and thermonuclear destruction will appear essentially simultaneous" -- Lee
    1. Re:poor, silly sony by Dachannien · · Score: 2

      Don't they realize they would gain much more by apologizing for and desisting against GeoHot

      What part of "settled out of court" don't you understand?

    2. Re:poor, silly sony by krelian · · Score: 2

      Paragraphs, learn how to use them.

    3. Re:poor, silly sony by haderytn · · Score: 1

      There is a difference between knowing how to do something, and actually doing it.

    4. Re:poor, silly sony by eyenot · · Score: 1

      Oh, they did? That's what I get for barely paying attention. All I've been seeing is Sony issuing ridiculous declarations, lying to investors and consumers about their technical expertise, etc. I guess getting bit in the ass probably moved them through court a bit faster than I would expect them to be. Well, I guess we'll see what happens when they apologise.

      Frankly, if the (net) hackers don't lay off after the public apology that's coming up, I would have to agree with another user here that they might deserve further police action. As much as I hate to say it, despite the law's early encounters with hacking involving totally impolitic and heavy-handed approach, I don't relish the idea of aimless and ultimately fruitless hacking that's done with no sense of greater purpose except as a thin facade for nuisance. They'll just make demonizing DIY hackers like GeoHot more presentable if they keep it up.

      --
      "Stratigraphically the origin of agriculture and thermonuclear destruction will appear essentially simultaneous" -- Lee
    5. Re:poor, silly sony by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      There is a difference between knowing how to do something, and actually doing it.

      Yeah. Like Unicode.

      I'm looking at you Slashdot. You and all of your silly Varnish servers.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    6. Re:poor, silly sony by Fluffeh · · Score: 1

      Don't they realize they would gain much more by apologizing for and desisting against GeoHot

      What part of "settled out of court" don't you understand?

      Yes, but the "settled out of court" agreement was along the lines of: We will stop attacking you in court if you agree to drop what you are doing and never do it again.... I wouldn't really call that a settlement that both sides think is fair or just. It is simply Sony getting what they want - ie, GeoHot stopping development that restricts the control that Sony has on the PS3. GeoHot merely gets to not go to jail or be sued into oblivion.

      --
      Moved to http://soylentnews.org/. You are invited to join us too!
  10. What is the point, really? by mark-t · · Score: 2

    I mean, these intrusions are happening with such frequency that I can't imagine there's still a point to be proven... plus, reading about it all the time on slashdot is starting to feel like seeing a headline for a traffic light changing color.

    1. Re:What is the point, really? by hedwards · · Score: 1

      Does there need to be a point? Aren't plentiful lulz at the expense of a world class set of douches enough justification? Sony, like most other corporations doesn't seem to understand that you can't just fuck with people's shit without hitting a pocket of people that are going to take offense. But worse that than, there's a lot of people that would normally be outraged by the blackhat hackery that's been going on that have a hard time making more than a half assed attempt at pointing out that it's illegal for a reason.

    2. Re:What is the point, really? by mark-t · · Score: 1

      As I said... this is happening with such regularity and frequency that it has long since lost any sort of value as anything that is even slightly humorous or even interesting. If this continues, it can only end badly. And I don't mean badly for Sony.

  11. Go FBI! by Haeleth · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Seriously, I expect this will be modded into oblivion because Slashdot hates Sony and loves anyone who sticks it to the man (see also: Wikileaks, Anonymous, etc).

    But they are criminals, and therefore I for one am glad that the FBI has had some little success in tracking them down, and look forward eagerly to the day when the ringleaders are forced to defend their actions in court.

    The fact that they are committing crimes against someone you hate cannot justify those crimes. Indeed it must not, because turning a blind eye to crime just because you don't like the victim leads to mob rule. It is the antithesis of the rule of law on which our society is founded, which protects our rights as well as Sony's. That's one slope that history has proven time and time again to be very slippery indeed.

    And, hey, maybe they'll put up such a good defence that the jury will refuse to convict them and the balance of power between corporations and common people will be shifted, and that would probably be good too. But it should be done in courts or congress, not by vigilante mobs deciding to lynch a corporation that offended them.

    1. Re:Go FBI! by h4rr4r · · Score: 2, Interesting

      And, hey, maybe they'll put up such a good defence that the jury will refuse to convict them and the balance of power between corporations and common people will be shifted, and that would probably be good too. But it should be done in courts or congress, not by vigilante mobs deciding to lynch a corporation that offended them.

      Does it hurt to be that naive?

      Sure they are breaking the law, and they are probably bad people, but this is like watching Stalin fight Hitler. No matter who loses we win. In reality since they attacked Sony expect jail sentences, had they gone after a small company the FBI would not even care.

    2. Re:Go FBI! by Thruen · · Score: 1

      I enjoy this not because I hate Sony (although I'll never buy another Sony product) but because Sony has engaged in what should be considered criminal activity themselves, and got away with it. The actions against Sony are a form of vigilante justice, they're being punished because of what they did. And yes, the things they've done are wrong. The rootkit mess was awful, and giving customers a choice between two things they've already paid for (second OS or online play) is stealing. Yes, stealing, in a very real sense. And then they went after a man who sought to give back what Sony stole. I know this is very one-sided, but it's what the situation boils down to. I don't agree with the things Lulzsec has done because it's damaging to innocent people as well, but I'll be happy to watch it continue because I do feel that Sony deserves to be punished and I don't see that happening through the proper channels. I'd also love to see Lulzsec go after organizations like the RIAA and the MPAA, not because it's okay to steal music, but because it's not okay to have absurd punitive fines over downloading something that, in almost all cases, didn't amount to any losses because the truth is people wouldn't just go buy everything they download if they couldn't pirate it.

    3. Re:Go FBI! by Lemmy+Caution · · Score: 1

      The people who are going to get hurt are those whose personal information has been released, and who may suffer identity theft or worse as a result. Again, like Hitler vs Stalin, it's the millions of people who got caught in the middle who suffer.

    4. Re:Go FBI! by CherniyVolk · · Score: 1

      But they are criminals, and therefore I for one am glad that the FBI has had some little success in tracking them down

      You can not be serious Haeleth. By that rationale, any time a tyrant needs to gain your approval he only needs to make any opposing
      act a criminal offense and you'll be certain to point out that "but they are criminals!".

      You sir, need to read up on some philosophy, particularly Thoreau's Civil Disobedience. Regardless of government, that essay
      applies to all authority as far as I'm concerned. To hell with you if you wish to ignore these hackers' obligation to resist and defy
      while labeling them as crooks. For this, your post ought to be modded down. I'd have a good mind to pitch in on their effort, I'm
      already rather adamant about our position as I have refused to update my PS3; I could care less about a trash proprietary blueray
      feature ('new' bluerays don't work because I haven't updated my PS3), I could care less about their Sony Playstation Network. My
      PS3 still has the Alternative OS feature; and Sony can suck my dick, it's my property not theirs they forfeited ALL rights to it the
      moment they said my 400 dollars was fair trade at BestBuy. I don't give a flying rats ass what "laws" may disagree, I refuse to
      acknowledge the authority of any person in defiance of my position and I'll break any damn law to preserve what I know
      is right.

      To hell with people like you. To hell with your rationale supporting Sony. To hell with your damn post.

    5. Re:Go FBI! by memyselfandeye · · Score: 1

      You are correct sir. I should be able to park a dump truck full of gold anywhere in the world and know that it will be safe. Likewise, I should be able to create an account with and not worry about criminals misusing that information. Criminals, weather premeditated or not, always think that "because I could, I should." It doesn't matter if you are stealing my truck full o' gold because I was stupid, or stealing my identity because you can. It isn't yours, and you have no privileges to access it....

      Unfortunately, the world has criminals and my utopia doesn't exist. Well, it does in my town but the Internet doesn't end at the county borders. I can leave the door unlocked, let my neighbors borrow the car, and leave money on a counter... I can't leave my passwords lying around on the internet because of yo-yos like LulzSec.

    6. Re:Go FBI! by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 1

      I'll give a rat's ass when Sony is held to the same legal standards as Joe Hacker.

      --
      Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
    7. Re:Go FBI! by luther349 · · Score: 1

      conserding its going to take mobs to lynch certen elected officals to get the point across your point is moot. screaming and yelling gets you nowhere other then some ritch fatcats laughs. the problem is even softwhere/hardware companys like sony have gotten into the same mindset as the walmarts and riaa of the world. treat everyone like shit lie cheat and steal from both are employees and custmers and do not to forget to treat everyone like there going to steal from us. and guess what all said companys are still allowed to operate hear ion the usa.

    8. Re:Go FBI! by houghi · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Where was the FBI when Sony hacked our systems?

      We KNOW where the ringleaders are who did that and I am also looking forward eagerly to the day when the ringleaders are forced to defend their actions in court.

      My guess is that yours comes first and mine won't come at all.

      So yeah, I stick it to the man, because there is REASON to do so.

      --
      Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
    9. Re:Go FBI! by Urza9814 · · Score: 1

      The fact that they are committing crimes against someone you hate cannot justify those crimes. Indeed it must not, because turning a blind eye to crime just because you don't like the victim leads to mob rule. It is the antithesis of the rule of law on which our society is founded, which protects our rights as well as Sony's. That's one slope that history has proven time and time again to be very slippery indeed.

      Sure, they did they crime, they should do the time...that's part of civil disobedience. But cheering on the hackers against Sony is no different from, say, cheering on MLK during the '60s. Or any major civil rights leaders. Almost all of them have done something illegal as part of their movements. Sit-ins, for example. Illegal and immoral are two entirely different concepts, and while I understand the importance of firm laws, I for one support moral behavior over legal behavior every time.

    10. Re:Go FBI! by Princeofcups · · Score: 2

      But it should be done in courts or congress, not by vigilante mobs deciding to lynch a corporation that offended them.

      Yes it should, but it won't be. Those same corporations own those politicians and courts lock stock and barrel. The only time we ever see any government action against a corporation is when it's one corporation verses another, biggest bastard take all. There is no realistic legal action that any individual can take against a corporation. The laws and legal processes make sure of that.

      Laws were broken and heads were busted the last time that individual American's actions had any effect on the state of their country. We have been way too complacent for the past 30 years. I do not advocate any particular form of law breaking, but it's a legitimate form of social protest. Remember, today's villains are often tomorrow's heroes.

      --
      The only thing worse than a Democrat is a Republican.
    11. Re:Go FBI! by GrumblyStuff · · Score: 1

      What? Are you kidding? Corporations own all branches of the government. They write the laws, pay off their rubber stamps in Congress, and promise sweet, sweet cash for reelection of the President. The people won't get justice through the court nor through the law. Yes, they broke the law but I'll side with them until people with money and power are beholden to the same laws and penalties.

      I suppose I can't justify the exposure of personal data but at the same time how do we know all this data wasn't abused in secret? I ask that only because of the speed and magnitude and quantity of these hacks. Now we have LulzSec come by and show just how vulnerable these accounts are. They're forcing the issue and I like that.

    12. Re:Go FBI! by Raenex · · Score: 1

      Seriously, I expect this will be modded into oblivion

      Of course it wasn't, because you used the karma-whoring trick by complaining in advance.

      because Slashdot hates Sony and loves anyone who sticks it to the man (see also: Wikileaks, Anonymous, etc).

      Actually, there have been quite a few posts, highly moderated no less, that have disparaged the hackers. Done without karma-whoring, too.

    13. Re:Go FBI! by taucross · · Score: 1

      And you are a Coward.

      --
      "In the absence of the ability to establish the attribute of truth they tried to establish the noble attributes."
    14. Re:Go FBI! by Risen888 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I'm losing all the mods I made thus far (and resisting the temptation to downmod you just because you coughed up that stupid "I'll get modded down for this" crap, which is my usual policy for such whiny attention-seeking dickweedism), but I can't let this go by uncontested.

      turning a blind eye to crime just because you don't like the victim leads to mob rule. It is the antithesis of the rule of law on which our society is founded, which protects our rights as well as Sony's.

      That's just crazy. Our society in no way "protects our rights as well as Sony's." Our legal system is designed to protect Sony's "rights" (which are not rights, but privileges granted to an artificial construct called Sony) at the expense of our rights (which are in fact, as enumerated in our Constitution, actual and legal rights). The idea you propose here matches neither the theoretical nor the actual system under which we live. And you know it.

      That's one slope that history has proven time and time again to be very slippery indeed.

      I'd say the exact same thing, but I don't think we're talking about the same slope.

      And, hey, maybe they'll put up such a good defence that the jury will refuse to convict them and the balance of power between corporations and common people will be shifted, and that would probably be good too. But it should be done in courts or congress, not by vigilante mobs deciding to lynch a corporation that offended them.

      Because that happens in courtrooms across this great land of ours every day, doesn't it? Congresscritters are pushing each other out of the way to champion Joe Everyman against the nefarious interests of Big Media, aren't they? And our well-informed, socially aware, and technologically savvy courts deal defeat after defeat to these villains! Why, it's a wonder things like this ever happen given the enlightened society and legal code under which we live!

      Are you fucking kidding me?

      Are you for some reason under the impression that those people work for you or something? I can assure you they do not.

      Given all that, I'd like to hear a realistic alternative to vigilante mobs.

      --
      Hey, I finally got my first freak! Took you long enough!
    15. Re:Go FBI! by brainzach · · Score: 1

      They are criminals for stealing personal information and posting it on the Internet.

    16. Re:Go FBI! by brainzach · · Score: 1

      MLK lead peaceful demonstrations that did not harm innocents.

      The hackers are harming innocent civilians to promote their cause which is closer to terrorism than civil disobedience. Give in to our demands or we will have to compromise more accounts.

    17. Re:Go FBI! by bryan1945 · · Score: 1

      So, you don't like Sony?

      --
      Vote monkeys into Congress. They are cheaper and more trustworthy.
    18. Re:Go FBI! by jthill · · Score: 1

      Hey, that's pretty good. Vandalism, theft, fraud, abuse of process, all crimes when done by kids and rights when done by corporate thralls.

      I'm going to break something of yours, now. But it's ok, see, I wrote myself a permission slip, AND I'm going to let you choose which of these two things to let me break!

      I'll even let you watch, and if you try to fix it afterwards I sue your ass into oblivion in a court case I and everyone on the planet knows I can't win, but I don't care. I get paid the same either way, but it'll break you, and that's the point. When you're as rich as I am, treating people this way will be your right too.

      --
      As always, all IMO. Insert "I think" everywhere grammatically possible.
    19. Re:Go FBI! by QuasiSteve · · Score: 1

      Where was the FBI when Sony hacked our systems?

      Wait.. when did SONY hack your system?

      Did I miss something? Was somebody at SONY - presumably somebody high enough in the ranks to be referred to as 'SONY', and not some kid who got bored - actually connecting to your computer, exploiting a vulnerability, and using that to their advantage somehow?

      I ask because that's what I'm thinking of when somebody says 'hack'.

      I'm pretty sure that installing software when a CD is inserted, for the purposes of copyright protection, however failworthy and undesirable... is not hacking. Not even when you falsely apply the 'rootkit' label to that particular software and somehow by association will it into being a 'hack'.

    20. Re:Go FBI! by MobileTatsu-NJG · · Score: 1

      Seriously, I expect this will be modded into oblivion because Slashdot hates Sony and loves anyone who sticks it to the man (see also: Wikileaks, Anonymous, etc).

      I don't think anybody is describing these guys as 'good' or 'heroes' or 'right'. I think they're just happy to see Sony take its lumps.

      If my estimation of the current feelings of the GroupThink, you'd get modded down for saying that this should never have happened to Sony, but I don't think anybody'll give you crap about calling these guys criminals.

      --

      "I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)

    21. Re:Go FBI! by Fnord666 · · Score: 1

      Yes it should, but it won't be. Those same corporations own those politicians and courts lock stock and barrel. The only time we ever see any government action against a corporation is when it's one corporation verses another, biggest bastard take all. There is no realistic legal action that any individual can take against a corporation. The laws and legal processes make sure of that.

      Then no one should be surprised when JFK's words once again prove prophetic:

      Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.

      --
      'The tyrant will always find pretext for his tyranny.' - Aesop's Fables
    22. Re:Go FBI! by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      It's hard to feel very sorry for Sony - and to even feel their opponents are doing something so very much worse than what Sony did itself.

      If your information was among that taken, I'm damn sure that you would be seeing it in a different light. But hey, it doesn't affect you so it's OK right? Douche.

      Finally I take strong exception to (what appears ot be) a generalization of WikiLeaks and Anonymous. They are fighting for the true values of The Republic.

      Wikileaks, I get. I mean, it should be a little more careful about ensuring that what gets leaked does not put others at risk, and frankly the irrational vendetta against the US gets old (hey, there's other countries too! And they have governments!) but all in all it does seem that properly run it can do good.

      Anonymous though, how the bloody hell can you possibly call that fighting for any form of values? Unless the values you refer to are greed, rage, and just downright assholery. So far, in their fight against the "Enemies of Wikileaks", they've taken down the websites of the two major payment card processors (no effect), taken down PayPal (resulting in disruption of a portion of global commerce for everyone), failed to take down Amazon (resulting in much laughing and finger pointing). Then, in the fight against "Enemies of George Hotz", they've knocked over a gaming network that doesn't cost anything to use (therefore not directly making any money, but in fact costing money...) and if rumour is to be believed, stole and sold/distributed personal information of millions of people. How is that righteous? Here's the answer: it's not. It's goddamn criminal.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    23. Re:Go FBI! by X.25 · · Score: 1

      The fact that they are committing crimes against someone you hate cannot justify those crimes. Indeed it must not, because turning a blind eye to crime just because you don't like the victim leads to mob rule. It is the antithesis of the rule of law on which our society is founded, which protects our rights as well as Sony's. That's one slope that history has proven time and time again to be very slippery indeed.

      Tell me, what happens if you install few thousand rootkits on peoples' computers? And what happens when Sony does it?

      Sorry, you were talking about "your rights", weren't you?

      People don't like the "victim" because victim is not held responsible for its crimes. It's only natural.

    24. Re:Go FBI! by hrimhari · · Score: 1

      I'm pretty sure that installing software when a CD is inserted, for the purposes of copyright protection, however failworthy and undesirable... is not hacking. Not even when you falsely apply the 'rootkit' label to that particular software and somehow by association will it into being a 'hack'.

      Geepers, thank you for clearing that out. I was so sure that such kind of practice (secretly installing software with backdoors on other people's computers) was called hacking, and the vector was called Trojan horse...

      --
      http://dilbert.com/2010-12-13
    25. Re:Go FBI! by Zomalaja · · Score: 1

      Mark Russinovich (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Russinovich) seemed to think it was a rootkit.
      Here is his detailed analysis - http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/archive/2005/10/31/sony-rootkits-and-digital-rights-management-gone-too-far.aspx

    26. Re:Go FBI! by dissy · · Score: 1

      I'm pretty sure that installing software when a CD is inserted, for the purposes of copyright protection, however failworthy and undesirable... is not hacking. Not even when you falsely apply the 'rootkit' label to that particular software and somehow by association will it into being a 'hack'.

      So when Sony installs software on your computer that enables them to remotely connect to it and issue commands as the administrator, that's good.

      But when LulzSec and others install software on Sony's computers that enables them to remotely connect and issue commands as the administrator, that's bad?

      When Sony only remotely connect to a few of the hundreds of thousands of hacked computers they rooted, and only exploits a few of them, that's good.

      But when LulzSec and others only remotely connect to a few of the hundreds of hacked computers they rooted at Sony, and only exploits a few of them, that's bad?

      I just want to make sure I understand you correctly.

      Also, do either hack come with a free Frogert?

      You also seem to have an interesting definition of 'rootkit'. Since I only know the real definition, could you kindly elaborate on yours?

    27. Re:Go FBI! by Xest · · Score: 2

      Your unwavering view that the rule of law is moral and just is disturbing.

      I live in the UK where we have a first past the post voting system such that most governments are elected to have a majority giving them 100% of power with the support of only 30% - 35% of the population. This has led to schemes such as the ID card database which well over half the population opposed. Many laws are similarly opposed by such large proportions, but due to the nature of our voting system may be passed anyway.

      I do not respect laws which go against the will of the majority and I do not even respect laws which go against the will of even a large minority. A law which negatively effects less than 1% of the population may be moral and just, but a law that even 20% of the population believe is unfair must surely be classed as an unacceptably high level of persecution.

      So you can call them criminals for breaking some arbitrary law, and that's fine, but it really doesn't matter if what they do is still moral, ethical, and has the support of a non-negligible portion of the population, which, they certainly appear to have.

      The irony of your comment though is that Sony truly has broken laws in many countries but due to it's size and power to lobby, has got away scott free. Even if you do truly believe in the rule of law above what is simply ethically and morally right then your position is still highly hypocritical. If Sony was correctly punished for it's illegal actions then this may not have even happened in the first place.

      Those vigilante mobs are merely the powerless majority being sick of their voice being ignored, just like in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria and so forth where coincidentally, their actions of protest and government overthrow were illegal too.

    28. Re:Go FBI! by QuasiSteve · · Score: 1

      So when Sony installs software on your computer that enables them to remotely connect to it and issue commands as the administrator, that's good.

      No, that would be quite horrible.

      However, as far as I'm aware, the XCP software did not allow SONY or anybody else to remotely connect to the machine.

      Just to make sure you understand me correctly:
      I'll state right here that what it did do is still highly undesirable and I do believe that those responsible should have been held accountable to the full extent of the law as it applies to several practices among which for the GPL violations.

      I'll also state right here that I stated no opinions on the current LulzSec stuff. You can dig through my comment history to find one where I mentioned that the hacks were not some "largest public penetration test" but that the hacks were mostly for 'teh lulz'. I'd be honored if 'LulzSec' decided on that name based on that comment, but I highly doubt it ;)
      ( For what it's worth, I do think it's bordering on the juvenile, and I'm not of the belief that SONY 'deserves' to be hacked any more than I believe anybody's insufficiently protected house deserves to be robbed. I also think, however, that SONY could both have prevented this and reacted more adequately, and certainly should lay the blame largely with themselves. )

      Back to the beef of this thread, though... the assertion that it isn't a 'hack' and the secondary assertion that it isn't a 'rootkit'.

      My memory on this is rusty, however, and wikipedia of course only provides a summary (summary: it's a rootkit!) and cites a source which you then have to follow up several chains and finding the correct locations to some broken links to find any actual information at e.g. Mark Russinovich's research.
      http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/archive/2005/10/31/sony-rootkits-and-digital-rights-management-gone-too-far.aspx
      http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/archive/2005/11/04/more-on-sony-dangerous-decloaking-patch-eulas-and-phoning-home.aspx

      From that research (again as far as I can tell and I admit that it fits my memory so there may be some selective bias), it appears there were technically two behaviors:
      1. It hid itself from the user and most of the system.
      2. It 'phoned home', to look for updated album art.

      With that in mind, I'll skip to your last question:

      You also seem to have an interesting definition of 'rootkit'. Since I only know the real definition, could you kindly elaborate on yours?

      Certainly. From the wikipedia article to which you linked:

      A rootkit is software that 1. enables continued privileged access to a computer while 2. actively hiding its presence from administrators by subverting standard operating system functionality or other applications

      I added the numbers there because they help me explain.

      Part 2, "actively hiding its presence", is certainly in effect. No question there.

      However, both parts 2 and 1 are required in order to fit the rootkit definition.

      And while the software 'phones home' to check for new album art and subsequently doesn't do anything with it, it does not "enable continued privileged access to a computer".

      As such, it's not a rootkit.

      Now, mind you, the subsequently released removal tool had a serious flaw in it that could indeed lead to privileged access.
      http://freedom-to-tinker.com/blog/felten/sonys-web-based-uninstaller-opens-big-security-hole-sony-recall-discs
      This,

    29. Re:Go FBI! by Xest · · Score: 1

      "I think it's hardly fair to compare western social problems like "I don't like DRM" to the deep problems of Libya "The police raped my wife and 3 daughters"."

      No without a doubt they're not on the same scale, that's not my point at all, my point is that they're both born of private citizens reaching boiling point such that they don't care about the law in pursuing the best option to act to put the problems right that their elected (or unelected) representatives will not. People have had enough, boiling point has been reached and now they're beginning to lash back.

      "No corporate body is all powerful in today's society."

      No but they are disproportionately powerful, a lobby group like the RIAA can get laws passed such as the DMCA that the vast majority of the population simply do not want. That is entirely undemocratic, and entirely unacceptable.

      "They're not providing a public service, they're not making the world a better place."

      Oh but they are. Sony has been one of the major backers of anti-consumer laws, one of the major lobbying organisations behind getting to the US government to pressure foreign nations to reduce consumer rights. Without a doubt, weakening a company like Sony makes the world a better place- not to the extent of the overthrow of the likes of Gaddaffi of course, but for Western consumers, there's no doubt that forcing companies like Sony to focus on making good products at reasonable prices rather than lobbying for legal protections to allow them to sell bad products at high prices makes the world a better place. Sure it's trivial compared to problems in the likes of the middle east, but relative to Western society? It's still an issue that consumers want to see solved, and if the government wont do it and the people do then so be it.

    30. Re:Go FBI! by Risen888 · · Score: 1

      Our rights are most obviously alienable. The question is what we are prepared to do about it.

      --
      Hey, I finally got my first freak! Took you long enough!
    31. Re:Go FBI! by QuasiSteve · · Score: 1

      Actually, I thought the fascination was with the word "rootkit" - it was only somebody else who latched onto the whole "hacked" thing ;)

  12. Some more info by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    The article is pretty bad:

    One member of the group, Robert Cavanaugh, was apprehended and taken into custody by the FBI after an apparent counter hack, according to an internal chat log from their private IRC server, posted through SecList, a network mapper website.

    SecList? I think they meant the full-disclosure mailing list, which happens to be archived by seclists.org, which happens to be a "sister site" of insecure.org (the home of the nmap network mapper).

    Anyway, here is the relevant post

  13. I get the sense that Lulz is related to Anon by sandytaru · · Score: 1

    - or at least has folks with the same mentality, even if they're not from /b/ or 4chan. Although the Anons I know in real life are proud to admit their affiliation (to people who are okay to know), I also suspect that members of Lulz are quite okay being totally silent on what their are doing, considering how dangerous is it.

    If nothing else, this has provided me the impetus to go and change all my passwords.

    --
    Occasionally living proof of the Ballmer peak.
    1. Re:I get the sense that Lulz is related to Anon by creat3d · · Score: 1

      Anon does not equal 4chan.

      --
      Grammar nazis are to this community what excrements are to gold.
    2. Re:I get the sense that Lulz is related to Anon by Thud457 · · Score: 1

      well, seeing that their self-chosen moniker is lulzsec, I would assume that excludes the moralfags

      --

      the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

    3. Re:I get the sense that Lulz is related to Anon by Thruen · · Score: 1

      Seems that way. I've been wondering if Lulzsec is just the banner Anons fly under when they want to do things more harmful to the general public than Anonymous would want to associate themselves with.

    4. Re:I get the sense that Lulz is related to Anon by Asmor · · Score: 1

      Uh... Seriously?

      They're called Lulz Sec.

      I feel like a douchebag just for explaining this, but "for the lulz" is the reason anyone on /b/ (read: Anonymous) does anything.

  14. you attack its weak point for massive damage by Thud457 · · Score: 4, Funny

    heaven forbid they hack the presentation and the CEO starts blindly reading blather about a giant enemy crab off the teleprompter. That would be mortifying.

    --

    the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

    1. Re:you attack its weak point for massive damage by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Based on real Japanese history dontchaknow.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    2. Re:you attack its weak point for massive damage by hedwards · · Score: 1

      I for one kind of liked that game. But that damned inferno level really put me off for quite a while.

    3. Re:you attack its weak point for massive damage by saramakos · · Score: 1

      That could do MASSIVE DAMAGE to his reputation...

  15. Disjoined from reality. by Jibekn · · Score: 1

    From TFA:

    "SonyPictures.com was owned by a very simple SQL injection, one of the most primitive and common vulnerabilities, as we should all know by now. From a single injection, we accessed EVERYTHING. Why do you put such faith in a company that allows itself to become open to these simple attacks?”

    Are these hackers this disjointed from reality they believe this? Does everyone wear a bullet proof vest 100% of the time? Guess its their fault they get shot for simply walking down the street.

    Blaming Sony for these hacks are in the same league as blaming a rape victim for the assault because she was dressed and acting like a slut. Sure Sony is an evil corporation, but you never get to blame the victim of a crime, for the crime.

    No means no, whether its a girl telling you no when you try and cop a feel, or a cooperation saying no to using their service unless you play by their rules.

    1. Re:Disjoined from reality. by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      in regards of computer security yes you wear your bullet proof vest all day everyday

      and no this is not like blaming a rape victim for acting like a slut, this is blaming a slut for acting like a a slut wide open and completely exposed

    2. Re:Disjoined from reality. by aix+tom · · Score: 1

      Sony probably don't have money and manpower left to protect their customers data from hackers, because they spent all their money and manpower trying to invent new ways to protect their content from being accessed by their customers.

    3. Re:Disjoined from reality. by Trilkin · · Score: 1

      From TFA:

      "SonyPictures.com was owned by a very simple SQL injection, one of the most primitive and common vulnerabilities, as we should all know by now. From a single injection, we accessed EVERYTHING. Why do you put such faith in a company that allows itself to become open to these simple attacks?”

      Are these hackers this disjointed from reality they believe this? Does everyone wear a bullet proof vest 100% of the time? Guess its their fault they get shot for simply walking down the street.

      Blaming Sony for these hacks are in the same league as blaming a rape victim for the assault because she was dressed and acting like a slut. Sure Sony is an evil corporation, but you never get to blame the victim of a crime, for the crime.

      No means no, whether its a girl telling you no when you try and cop a feel, or a cooperation saying no to using their service unless you play by their rules.

      I understand what you're saying, and I agree with that on principle, but this is slightly different. If we're using the rape analogy, this is more similar to a woman walking mostly nude into a dive bar and drunkenly saying a bit too loudly that it's impossible to rape her and that she thinks all men are pigs. Most men are decent enough to ignore her, but there're always a few who won't. Then, when she does get assaulted, the bouncers are completely ineffective and she spends the good part of an hour or so getting viciously raped before the cops finally get there while everyone else watches either in horror or in amusement and the spectacle. By that time, the rapists are long gone.

      Does she deserve what happened to her? No, not really. She was drunk and being stupid. Should she be SURPRISED that it happened to her? Probably not.

      --
      Nobody cares what the CAPTCHA for your post was.
    4. Re:Disjoined from reality. by PitaBred · · Score: 1

      The thing is, you are putting your website out on a street that is KNOWN to have people randomly shot by (let's be a little nicer here) paintballs. That's the Internet, and it's what the Internet has been for decades now. It costs a little bit, but it's relatively easy to have very tough to defeat body armor. Sony went out onto that street in it's underwear, and is now complaining that jerks are shooting them with paintballs. Legally, Sony is completely right. Morally... Sony deserves every ass-welt they get for being jerks and parading around in their underwear online.

    5. Re:Disjoined from reality. by luther349 · · Score: 1

      they could throw your money in the streets and you will never see it again. have you ever tryed to get your money back when the bank messes up heh. of couse they will happly harass you with phone calls every 5 minuts when you owe then 1 cent. and sony is on the same we can do anything wth your money level as a bank.

    6. Re:Disjoined from reality. by tehniobium · · Score: 1

      I don't agree with your metaphor; Sony aren't simply walking down the street, they are responsible for the security of more than their own network (in the metaphor, their own life) - they are responsible for the data and identity of all the customers they keep on file.

      So it's more like a bus-driver, driving a bus down a road.

      Now a SQL injection is only possible if the coder who wrote the Sony server software was an incompetent moron AND no proper code review has been done. Securing your inputs is not at all hard. If I can do it, so can Sony.

      In the metaphor, this is equivalent to the bus company neglecting to have the bus repaired/maintained regularly. The result is that the bus is held together by one bolt. Now the person that undoes that bolt is a criminal, yes. But the bus company sure aren't free of blame by a long shot.

      --
      No kitty, this is my pot pie!
    7. Re:Disjoined from reality. by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 2

      Actually, a website vulnerable to SQL injection really is completely inane in 2011. This is something that every DB framework knows how to handle, and also something that has been explained in detail again and again for over a decade. There is no excuse for having something like that on a production website, period.

      It's not like not wearing a bulletproof vest, it's more like going out in the street naked with $100 bills glued all over you at 3am in Detroit. In these circumstances, it is entirely appropriate to blame the victim of a crime as well as the perpetrators.

    8. Re:Disjoined from reality. by Spad · · Score: 1

      No, you don't get to blame Sony for the crime, but saying that Sony have been (criminally?) negligent in protecting their customers' data? That they've failed to learn from their multitude of security mistakes? That actually they kind of deserve it in this case?

      A simple "We apologise for our douchebaggery over the OtherOS stuff" months ago would probably have been enough to have avoided all this trouble, but they wanted to save face at a cost of what is fast becoming a PR nightmare. If LulzSec don't have something planned to coincide with Sony's E3 keynote then I'll be amazed.

    9. Re:Disjoined from reality. by Duradin · · Score: 1

      BOOM! Headshot! Well, so much for that vest, at least the family might be able to sell it off to pay for part of the funeral costs.

      Even if the wide open and completely exposed slut is pleasuring themselves with any and every object imaginable it still wouldn't be an excuse for raping them.

    10. Re:Disjoined from reality. by Osgeld · · Score: 1

      well OMG me its not a perfect world and I will now leave my self so exposed that someone can "rape" me just by looking

      I am glad you feel sorry for Sony corp, but a) Sony is not a person, and does not deserve 1 bit of feeling and b) really a sql injection attack in 2011 into one of the largest electronic / computer / media corporations in the world?

      this slut is but naked in a bad neighbourhood at night, spread wide with a "cum fuck me" sign just out of plain sight and you want me to feel bad for them

      FUCK SONY, I hope another dozen script kiddies start needling them, apparently any fuckwit with a bash prompt can do it by accident while doing an apt-get!

    11. Re:Disjoined from reality. by Ash-Fox · · Score: 1

      Actually, a website vulnerable to SQL injection really is completely inane in 2011. This is something that every DB framework knows how to handle, and also something that has been explained in detail again and again for over a decade. .

      Please explain the following then, some of these are even well known and well sued DB frameworks:

      Ushahidi "range" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-06-03
      Guru JustAnswer Professional "id" and "que_id" SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-05-31
      Joomla! Joomnik Gallery Component "album" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-30
      Joomla! jomEstate PRO Component "district" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-30
      Guru Penny Auction Pro "prodid" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-30
      DuhokForum "mode" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-30
      ClipBucket "cb_lang" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-25
      Joomla Map Locator "cid" SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-05-24
      DH-MLM "affid" and "password" SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-05-24
      Tugux CMS Cross-Site Scripting and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-05-23
      Cisco Unified Operations Manager Cross-Site Scripting and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-05-19
      Zend Framework PDO_MySql Character Set Weakness 2011-05-19
      Radvision iVIEW SCOPIA Management Suite SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-19
      Pligg CMS "scategory" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-17
      Joomla! DOCman Component SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-17
      NoticeBoardPro SQL Injection and Arbitrary File Upload Vulnerabilities 2011-05-16
      SecureSphere Web Application Firewall Security Bypass Vulnerability 2011-05-16
      IBM Datacap Taskmaster Capture Two Vulnerabilities 2011-05-13
      TYPO3 powermail Extension SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-11
      ZAPms "nick" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-10
      TCExam Two SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-05-09
      TCExam "order_field" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-09
      Samsung Data Management Server SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-05-09
      Proofpoint Enterprise Protection Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-05-04
      MediaCast Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-05-02
      Cisco Unified Communications Manager Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-04-28
      WordPress Sermon Browser Plugin Cross-Site Scripting and SQL Injection 2011-04-27
      phpMyChat Plus Cross-Site Scripting and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-26
      web2Project "token" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-04-22
      Debian update for doctrine 2011-04-21
      WordPress WP-StarsRateBox Plugin Cross-Site Scripting and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-20
      Oracle Database Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-04-20
      Oracle Enterprise Manager Grid Control Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-04-20
      Debian update for request-tracker3.6 and request-tracker3.8 2011-04-20
      WordPress Universal Post Manager Plugin Cross-Site Scripting and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-20
      Perl Jifty::DBI SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-18
      MyBB Information Disclosure and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-18
      EZ-Shop "specialid" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-04-15
      Agahi Script Insertion and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-15
      Joomla! Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-04-15
      RT Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-04-15
      TinyBB "post" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-04-14
      CA Total Defense Multiple Vulnerabilities 2011-04-14
      Sonexis ConferenceManager Script Insertion and SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-14
      Softbiz B2B Trading Marketplace Script "cid" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-04-11
      Softbiz Classified Ads PLUS Script "cid" SQL Injection Vulnerability 2011-04-11
      PHP-Jokesite "cat_id" SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-11
      Etki Video PRO Two SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-11
      PHP-Lance Multiple SQL Injection Vulnerabilities 2011-04-11
      Viscacha Cross-Site Scrip

      --
      Change is certain; progress is not obligatory.
    12. Re:Disjoined from reality. by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 1

      It goes to show the present sorry shape of the IT industry.

    13. Re:Disjoined from reality. by Ash-Fox · · Score: 1

      It goes to show the present sorry shape of the IT industry.

      The point of the matter is, I don't see it "appropriate to blame the victim of a crime" when the example of "DB frameworks" which supposedly "knows how to handle" this... Doesn't in 2011.

      --
      Change is certain; progress is not obligatory.
  16. Not always black and white by manekineko2 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Indeed it must not, because turning a blind eye to crime just because you don't like the victim leads to mob rule. It is the antithesis of the rule of law on which our society is founded, which protects our rights as well as Sony's. That's one slope that history has proven time and time again to be very slippery indeed.

    I don't think the history has conclusively proven at all whether the rule of law enforced blindly without regards to who is right or wrong is a good thing.

    For example, the Underground Railroad illegally helping escaped slaves, or every revolution in the history of the world.

    Obviously the importance of the cause is different here, but it helps make my point clearer by using high-profile examples.

    1. Re:Not always black and white by Nimey · · Score: 1

      /Every/ revolution? Even the Bolshevik revolution? The Khmer Rouge one in Cambodia?

      --
      Hail Eris, full of mischief...

      E pluribus sanguinem
    2. Re:Not always black and white by Wolfling1 · · Score: 1

      Well, of course they have a cause. However, it is a complex emotional situation that they are expressing.

      If we take the GeoHot story as an example (a subset, if you will), it is clear that they take issue with the notion that someone might purchase a thing, and then not own it. A large chunk of our economic rationalism is based on the concept that when you buy a thing, you own it. If the person who sold it to you then continue to claim any 'rights' to the object, it is an offence to capitalism.

      I'm not claiming that LulzSec are a bunch of right-wing fanatics. On the contrary, they have intrinsically recognised that capitalism is failing. Quite probably at a subsconscious level. They feel that their rights are being eroded by large corporations with big legal teams.

      They don't know what would be better, but they know that what we have today is wrong. They are so affronted by its wrongness that they feel the need to go to war against it.

      However, they also realise that they cannot hope to stand against that oppresive empire. As individuals, they can be picked off and annihilated (eg Robert Cavanaugh). Their strength lies in their anonymity. What they probably don't realise is that they are frightened to declare their cause. If they did, the oppresive empire could (would) spin the story round to a situation that would make LulzSec look bad. That's what spin doctors do, and in these modern times, we all know too well that it is dangerous to declare any opinion or position. Just look at how vague our government members have become.

      No. LulzSec have a cause, but they're not really clear on it because they're afraid to declare it. Its not so much the case that they fight for what they believe in. Its more so the case that they are fighting against what they don't believe in. And with all the angst and moral outrage that most teenagers exhibit, they will continue to tear down the wrongs of the world.

      Perhaps they will convince someone smarter to create a better model. A model that will pass their moral judgment. Or perhaps the existing model will figure out a way to oppress them. Time will tell.

      -- "History does not tell us who was right and who was wrong. It tells us who won."

    3. Re:Not always black and white by theArtificial · · Score: 1

      If it looks like a sale, acts like a sale, works like a sale, then it's a sale.

      --
      Man blir trött av att gå och göra ingenting.
    4. Re:Not always black and white by Mr.+Shotgun · · Score: 1

      If it looks like a sale, acts like a sale, works like a sale, then it's a sale.

      Not according to the DMCA.

      --
      Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the (supposed) good of its victims may be the most oppressive
    5. Re:Not always black and white by xhrit · · Score: 1

      nono, silly. just the good democratic revolutions.

  17. Re:We can't complain by Ezekiel68 · · Score: 1

    You must be new here.

    --
    Imagination is more important than knowledge -Einstien
  18. Nope, Safety is a Myth by IBitOBear · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Just like the TSA hasn't stopped a single act of terror, only passengers have done that; most security measures cannot stop a determined professional.

    Safety and Security are largely mythological, the concepts are sold to a public that feels the need to exist with impunity.

    In point of fact, it is largely manners that keeps people safe and secure. Most of us do not act on our darker natures because it would be rude.

    Sony has demonstrated that they don't care about being well-mannered, and that they honestly believe that technology can keep them safe. They believe in DRM and they believe that they have the right to change a deal they have already made as if they were Darth Vader. They believe in their own Empire and they are willing to use any means necessary to maintain their grasp.

    In point of fact, the technological community is simply having a very high immune response to this bad actor in their midst.

    If Sony were to just come out, apologize for being douche-bags and promise never to do it again, they attacks would taper off quickly. They don't even have to mean it.

    For all that the *IAA have been idiots and evil, they didn't mess with the technologists as a whole, so they have gotten a pass so far. They also don't actually do anything, so they have been impossible to strike.

    Sony, as a member of *IAA(s) _and_ as a first person actor in technology via the PS3 etc, _and_ having stepped far across the line with the Hotz thing, has simply taken the first hit of lightning.

    Thing is, the community at large has now learned that they _can_ make a company pay. The frontier has been opened. The Streisand Effect is real, and it will, sadly, take the business world a little longer to learn that "The Angry Villagers Rule" is real as well.

    The torches are alight and the pitchforks are out and waving.

    In the technological circles, the technologists are peasants, but they do feed the nation and they do strike back.

    Companies need to rediscover their manners.

    --
    Innocent people shouldn't be forced to pay for inferior software development.
    --"Code Complete" Microsoft Press
    1. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by memyselfandeye · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Wait what? You talk about 'bad manners' as agents of malcontent.

      I don't know where you come from, but I would consider it 'bad manners' to crack a security system just because you don't like a person, organization, or company... just as I would consider it 'bad manners' to punch someone in the face because I think they have 'bad manners.' Isn't it 'bad manners' to force someone to do something they would rather not... such as change their password because you just stole it from them?

      I don't know of a single nation that forces people to buy Playstations, Sony Music, or Sony TVs. If you don't like it, don't associate with them. Anything else is 'bad manners.'

    2. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by IBitOBear · · Score: 1

      I made no claim that the crackers were well mannered.

      Bad manners never engender good manners in others.

      I was also not advocating the process, just diagnosing it.

      --
      Innocent people shouldn't be forced to pay for inferior software development.
      --"Code Complete" Microsoft Press
    3. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by memyselfandeye · · Score: 1

      I made no claim that the crackers were well mannered.

      Bad manners never engender good manners in others.

      I was also not advocating the process, just diagnosing it.

      We'll you are correct, and it's a shame that this happens. The sad truth is, this is some ridiculous war between Sony and some image it has of how the world is. The same can be said for LulzSec and like minded people. The victims are the users caught in the middle. It's no different than some poor SOB getting shot in the face between two guys going at it outside a club because one guy pissed of the other

    4. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by Darinbob · · Score: 2

      If sony admitted faults, the lulz would not go away. They are not being hacked out of any sense of moral indignation but because it seems like a funny idea. These are not even up to the very low moral level of vigilantes, they are merely causing disruption for it's own sake. These people are not "the community."

    5. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by taucross · · Score: 1

      Welcome to war. If you're a peasant, you're a pawn.

      --
      "In the absence of the ability to establish the attribute of truth they tried to establish the noble attributes."
    6. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by IBitOBear · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Ah, but in objective view, we are into "the contractors working on the Death Star" debate. Blindly supporting one bad actor (Sony) and then complaining about suffering the fallout from another bad actor (hackers) is a tad disingenuous.

      You may not have _known_ you were supporting a bad actor, but its not so much that you happened to be in a bar when a brawl broke out, more you got into his car and rode to the convenience store, sat there in the car while he attempted a robbery, and then complain about getting hit with broken glass when the store clerk shoots back.

      This is, in my humble opinion, a case of _nobody_ being innocent and nobody being right. Everybody knows, or should have known, that Sony is a draconian evil empire as far as DRM and generally bing that least trustworthy entity "a corporation".

      The problem is that there is no other battlefield available to the revolting parties. They see themselves as revolutionaries, and they are not necessarily wrong in that perception.

      Revolution is always messy.

      I, personally, avoid Sony. I _do_ play Xbox whit Xbox Live, knowing full well what exposure that brings. I don't use windows except as work requires, nor mac (I use Linux at home and as the supervisor in most of my Windows work stuff). I don't use debit cards, only credit cards to interact with the Internet entities at large.

      The internet is "the bad part of town", I know not to bring my good car (the debit cards on real accounts) and I know to stay out of the seediest bits, but I have business there. I don't get to pick the street gangs, the corrupt cops, or the organized criminals that populate place. I pay my money and I take my chance. You to.

      We don't know how this is going to shake out. The history will be written by the winners, as it always is.

      Innocence is as much a myth as safety or security. Privacy is largely in that same boat.

      Back when I was a kid my grandmother used to say "a secret, once told, is a secret no longer" and that becomes orders of magnitude more true on the Internet or in the realms of alleged mental property.

      I said that Sony took the first lightning bolt. The storm is far from over. Some people are going to get wet, some people are going to get struck down, some things will burn and some things will grow. Fore every minute of playstation network downtime there is an improved chance of increased fairness in the credit reporting regulations. We don't know the unintended consequences yet.

      This thing gripping us economically here in the "new world", the same chaos that is gripping the "third world" in the flesh. The hackers believe they are hacking in your best long-term interests. Sony is claiming that their interests and your interests are the same. The waves rush outward from there.

      --
      Innocent people shouldn't be forced to pay for inferior software development.
      --"Code Complete" Microsoft Press
    7. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by Omnifarious · · Score: 4, Informative

      I'm guessing that at least part of the fun is the support they're getting. If that support evaporated, I think they'd find other targets. They want bitcoin donations, they talk about how many people follow them on twitter. They care about the support they get. So I don't think your assessment is entirely accurate.

    8. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by sjames · · Score: 2

      Throughout time, the penalty for having bad manners has often been others showing you none in return until you get the point.

      For example, make a lewd comment to someone's wife and indeed he will punch your face because he thinks you have bad manners.

    9. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by artor3 · · Score: 1

      Cut the disconnected, faux-high-minded crap. By your logic, Sony could hire mercenaries to start gunning down everyone who even might be involved, and hey, "nobodies innocent" and "revolutions are messy".

      This isn't a revolution. This is crime. Simple as that. We live in a society of laws. Criminals should be arrested and prosecuted. If you don't like the laws, press to have them changed. Don't go hurting millions of people for the "lulz" and then pretend to be altruistic after the fact.

    10. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by IBitOBear · · Score: 1

      They _could_ do anything.

      Its not "faux" high minded crap, its _actual_ high-minded crap.

      This is not a one sided issue and time will tell.

      And I am not a first-person actor in _any_ of it. Just and observer. (I have a real life with real credentials and everything so I could not personally afford to be on _either_ side of this in any active capacity.)

      And a revolution is defined by the people in revolt, not by some litmus test of right and wrong, nor win, nor lose.

      I know, in your black-and-white world your inability anesthetize yourself with pokimon or shout-um-ups is distressing, and you feel you have been wronged. And indeed to some extent you have been. But that's just by-catch in a much larger cycle of events and outcomes that will not resole itself in our lifetimes, if ever.

      I just report the facts as I see them. You may color my observations with your vitriol all you wish.

      --
      Innocent people shouldn't be forced to pay for inferior software development.
      --"Code Complete" Microsoft Press
    11. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by artor3 · · Score: 2

      This is not a revolt any more than a mugging is a revolt. Your attempts to romanticize common thugs is pathetic.

      Also, I don't even own a playstation. I just understand the difference between right and wrong.

    12. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by IBitOBear · · Score: 1

      revolts have nothing to do with right and wrong. Please read all the words before re-casting my cometary into your world view. Assuming one motive for any action is always wrong. They themselves call it a revolt, and I say they may not be wrong. You are trying to make it "romantic" so that you can attack that romance.

      Do you even know what "romance" means? (as a literary term, the thing is, now that you mention it, this is very like something from the romance period, but you make that connection not I. 8-)

      --
      Innocent people shouldn't be forced to pay for inferior software development.
      --"Code Complete" Microsoft Press
    13. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by Patch86 · · Score: 1

      The only different between a mugging and a revolution is scale. You beat up one normal person and it's a mugging. You beat up 10,000 really rich and powerful people, that's probably a revolution.

      Not necessarily a revolution with any sensible ideology behind it (pick any real-world military coup you like and you'll find ideology is more or less optional).

      Say what you like, defend it or condemn it, one of the world's largest multinational corporations getting hacked and harassed is a bigger deal than when Joe Average gets hacked. And being a revenge attack (rather than a theft) puts it more in the "ideology" camp than not.

    14. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by rohan972 · · Score: 1

      This isn't a revolution. This is crime. Simple as that. We live in a society of laws. Criminals should be arrested and prosecuted. If you don't like the laws, press to have them changed.

      The Sony executives who made the decision to install a rootkit on their customers computers will never be charged although if you or I got caught doing such a thing we would likely do time in prison.

      When your adversary can effectively lobby for laws to favour them and disadvantage you, and the laws that criminalise their behaviour are not enforced then you are faced with the choice of accepting oppression or operating outside the law. While widespread criminal activity and vigilantism is unacceptable, sometimes the justice system and law is so corrupt that submission to it is even more unacceptable. We have arguably reached that point now.

    15. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by zarthrag · · Score: 1

      Just because you don't agree with each other doesn't mean either one of you is wrong. IBitOBear seems to appreciate both sides, and you don't.

      Back in the late 1700s, the British would have agreed with you.

      Personally, I believe that the only way to fight large corporations is through what you brand as "thuggery". The Amercian legal system doesn't serve or protect citizens. It pays lawyers, and protects those who can hire more lawyers. If Sony files suit against me or you, that's it. Even if I were a multi-millionaire, I couldn't fight a legal battle against them. And the corporations know it.

      People aren't all going to simply rise up and do anything except watch American Idol - Wikileaks, Anonymous, lulzsec, and whomever decides to join the fight next week aren't going to be ideal/perfect - by definition. They indicate that society has lost the ability to defend itself legally/fairly. It's only natural that a mechanism is developed to make these corporations show some restraint. Of couse they are criminals, but not because you and I say so. But because those in-charge say so, and without consulting "us". Wikileaks isn't going to be a campaign issue, Weiner's lewd pictures, abortion rights, and whatever else the media puts on the news cycle is. "Because that's what we're supposed to be worrying about."

      So, yes, it is a revolt. But not a lot of people are in it. And it's not over any one cause in particular. The Revolutionary War started in the same way, before erupting into all out conflict. (Tussles over taxation, free trade, etc) I don't expect "war". But I do expect a growing disrespect for current hierarchy and rules. Probably over many years. I don't agree with the internet being the "bad part of town". It's more like the wild, and mostly undeveloped, west. Easy to get mugged, but possible to get rich. Just be careful.

      --
      Why can't all fpga/microcontroller manufacturers just release free optimizing compilers???
    16. Re:Nope, Safety is a Myth by fuzznutz · · Score: 1

      By your logic, Sony could hire mercenaries to start gunning down everyone who even might be involved

      Isn't that pretty much what started this whole debacle? Sony subpoenaed everyone who donated to Geohot and those who dared to look at his research. They drew first blood by siccing their lawyers on the innocent. Now they are reaping the whirlwind.

      This isn't a revolution. This is crime.

      Only time will decide that. Most failed revolutionaries are declared criminals by the winners.

  19. George Carlin would like a word with you... by Pyrus.mg · · Score: 1

    "Ohhh, some people don't like you to talk like that. Ohh, some people like to shut you up for saying those things.
    You know that. Lots of people. Lots of groups in this country want to tell you how to talk.
    Tell you what you can't talk about. Well, sometimes they'll say, well you can talk about something but you can't joke about it.
    Say you can't joke about something because it's not funny. Comedians run into that shit all the time.
    Like rape. They'll say, "you can't joke about rape. Rape's not funny."
    I say, "fuck you, I think it's hilarious. How do you like that?"
    I can prove to you that rape is funny. Picture Porky Pig raping Elmer Fudd.
    See, hey why do you think they call him "Porky," eh? I know what you're going to say.
    "Elmer was asking for it. Elmer was coming on to Porky.
    Porky couldn't help himself, he got a hard- on, he got horney, he lost control, he went out of his mind."
    A lot of men talk like that. A lot of men think that way. They think it's the woman's fault.
    They like to blame the rape on the woman. Say, "she had it coming, she was wearing a short skirt."
    These guys think women ought to go to prison for being cock teasers. Don't seem fair to me.
    Don't seem right, but you can joke about it. I believe you can joke about anything.
    It all depends on how you construct the joke. What the exaggeration is. What the exaggeration is.
    Because every joke needs one exaggeration. Every joke needs one thing to be way out of proportion.
    Give you an example. Did you ever see a news story like this in the paper?
    Every now and then you run into a story, says, "some guy broke into a house, stole a lot of things, and while he was in there, he raped an 81 year old woman."
    And I'm thinking to myself, "WHY??? What the fuck kind of a social life does this guy have?"
    I want to say, "why did you do that?" "Well she was coming on to me. We were dancing and I got horney.
    Hey, she was asking for it, she had on a tight bathrobe." I'll say, "Jesus Christ, be a little fucking selective next time will you?"

    Now, speaking of rape, do you know what I wonder? I wonder is there more rape at the equator or the north pole.
    These are the kind of things I think about when I'm sitting home alone and the power goes out.
    I wonder is there more rape at the equator or the north pole. I mean per capita, I know the populations are different.
    Most people think it's the equator, I think it's the north pole.
    People think it's the equator because it's hot down there, they don't wear a lot of clothing, guys can see women's tits, they get horney and there's a lot of fucking going on.
    That's exactly why there's less rape at the equator. Because there's a lot of fucking going on.
    You can tell there's a lot of fucking at the equator, take a look at the population figures.
    Billions of people live near the equator. How many Eskimos do we have?
    Thirty? Thirty five? No one's getting laid at the north pole, it's too fucking cold.
    Guys say to their wives, "hey tonight honey, huh, tonight, huh?"
    "Are you crazy? The wind chill factor is three hundred below."
    These guys are deprived. Their horney. Their pent up. Every now and then...p-pmm...they bust out, they got to rape somebody.

    Now, the biggest problem an Eskimo rapist has, trying to get wet leather leggings off a woman who is kicking.
    Did you ever try to get leather pants off of someone who doesn't want to take them off?
    You would lose your hard-on in the process.
    Up at the north pole you dick would shrivel up like a stack of dimes.
    That's another thing I wonder.
    I wonder, does a rapist have a hard-on when he leaves the house in the morning,
    or does he develop it during the day while he's walking around looking for somebody.
    These are the kind of thoughts that kept me out of the really good schools. "

  20. Really? by lennier1 · · Score: 1

    By now I'm surprised there aren't actually several groups which have turned this whole thing into some kind of sport. It's certainly not for a lack of opportunities.

  21. Hacked? by cforciea · · Score: 1

    Does anything in the article indicate that they actually "hacked" anything? Doesn't it sound at least as feasible as anything that somebody from the inside leaked the source code and there was no network security breach as such at all? I've seen plenty of other things from this group to indicate that they are willing to make their successes out to be more impressive than they were, so it wouldn't really surprise me.

  22. lulzsec == pwnt? by synthesizerpatel · · Score: 2
    1. Re:lulzsec == pwnt? by SmurfButcher+Bob · · Score: 1

      Also a claim that it's a poser's hoax -

      http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2011/Jun/88

      --

      help me i've cloned myself and can't remember which one I am

  23. Re:a mess of santorum by donotlizard · · Score: 1

    Uh, I was considering Rick Santorum as my candidate of choice for President if his name was on the ballot in 2012. Now I'm not so sure.

  24. Here are some pics of him. by crow_t_robot · · Score: 2

    http://89.248.164.63/dox/xyz/

    (for the lulz)...spoiler alert: mIRC, smoke weed errrday, WinXP, Amazon shopping spree

  25. New term in dictionary. "Sonyfail" Epic fail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Found on urban dictionary.

    Sonyfail

    When an apparent act of failure is so consistently repeated, of such a grandiosely stupid, and/or of spectacularly epic proportions that no additional adjectives applied to describe it will ever do any further justice, such as the corporate failure by SONYin 2011.
    HAHA! SONYFAIL! HAHA!!!

    Example: "Man, that managers rant outburst in the meeting was sonyfail"

  26. I dont approve exactly... by Sprouticus · · Score: 1

    but I dont disapprove.

    Vigilante justice occurs when people feel that real justice is not taking place or is not available to them. Sony has regularly screwed its customers and now it is paying the price. You can only push people so far before they react. I know the antics of this group is immature, but it is doing far more to sony than the government is capable of in retribution for the rootkit, the PS3 fiasco, and (from what I have read) SWG ;)

    I say fuck em and fuck anyone stupid enough to use their services. If you lay with a whore, dont be surprised when you get the clap.

  27. Story is wrong by LoneHighway · · Score: 1

    This information is incorrect and Slashdot is among the last to correct it. The arrest of Robert Cavanaugh was some time ago and he had nothing to do with LulzSec.

    http://www.dailytech.com/LulzSec+Hacked+Nope+Sony+Hacked+Again+Yes+Twice/article21832.htm

  28. Re:a mess of santorum by Jedi+Alec · · Score: 1

    Mission accomplished then? :-)

    --

    People replying to my sig annoy me. That's why I change it all the time.
  29. Torrent with source code by Meneth · · Score: 1
  30. No arrests by MrPPS · · Score: 1

    LulzSec has said no one was arrested from their group. See the following: http://twitter.com/#!/LulzSec/status/77785393289887745

  31. You might think so, by ThatsNotPudding · · Score: 1

    but I think this village *is* worth destroying!

  32. On the other hand... by tchdab1 · · Score: 1

    Maybe the authorities just let LuisSec check his email from jail.

  33. This is not news by souravzzz · · Score: 1

    The real news will be when /. posts "NO SECURITY BREACH IN PSN/SONY TODAY!" I am waiting for that day.

  34. Sony Exec talks about lessons learnt by summerbreeze · · Score: 1

    Unfortunate coincidence - just as the source code is leaked, Sony executive talks to BBC about lessons learnt from the network hacks and compromised user account information:'Making sure that (you know) once you have a secure network, then people that are out to get the information will try to out do the security mechanisms that we have put in place. Even today, we don't know what was actually stolen, because we are still doing the investigations.'

    Maybe Sony should look at the bright side; much of the investigation has been done by the hackers themselves who are not shy about sharing what they have stolen.

    On a side-note, I wonder how Robert is doing as the LulzSec claims arrested hacker is not part of the group, just some guy.

  35. Re:We can't complain by TangoMargarine · · Score: 1

    He wouldn't be making the joke if he was new here...

    --
    Unity? Screw that: XFCE. Slashdot Beta? Screw that: SoylentNews. Australis? Screw that: Pale Moon. UX developers DIAF
  36. The most amazing thing... by Pseudonym+Authority · · Score: 1

    ...in Modern History

    Computers, the Internet, and free, open, anonymous bulletin boards where anyone on the planet can interact with anyone else; exchange ideas, information, even help, and this is what it looks like. True, it's still in it's nascent stages, but my god, how pathetic. Look at these threads. Children, fools, racists, and bitter deviants. Most of you should be ashamed. Do you even know what shame is? You make me ashamed of humanity. It's the 21st century.
    Time to grow up.

  37. Re:Deviants? You ARE one (see these 2 posts folks) by Pseudonym+Authority · · Score: 1

    Hey Faggots,

    My name is John, and I hate every single one of you. All of you are fat, retarded, no-lifes who spend every second of their day looking at stupid ass pictures. You are everything bad in the world. Honestly, have any of you ever gotten any pussy? I mean, I guess it's fun making fun of people because of your own insecurities, but you all take to a whole new level. This is even worse than jerking off to pictures on facebook.

    Don't be a stranger. Just hit me with your best shot. I'm pretty much perfect. I was captain of the football team, and starter on my basketball team. What sports do you play, other than "jack off to naked drawn Japanese people"? I also get straight A's, and have a banging hot girlfriend (She just blew me; Shit was SO cash). You are all faggots who should just kill yourselves. Thanks for listening.

    Pic Related: It's me and my bitch

  38. Re:Pseudonym Authority - Time for your medication by Pseudonym+Authority · · Score: 1

    GNAA-re-bump *again
    Seriously stop bumping other threads. If you dont support the GNAA, then the neurotypicals will run the internet and thats the last thing you want.
    Do you want to see uncreative, unfunny spam on every site? Because if you do there will be only facebook, twitter and all that neurotypical shit left.
    So get off your asses and FIGHT THE NEUROTYPICALS!
    So start linking people to http://anything.on.nimp.org/.
    That should show those neurotypicals.