Sony's Plan To Tighten Security and Fight Hacktivism

mask.of.sanity writes "Sony Entertainment Network is rebuilding its information security posture to defend against hacktivism. It includes a security operations center that serves as a nerve center collating information on everything from staff phone calls, to CCTV, to PlayStation gamers. If it is successful, the counter intelligence-based system will be deployed across the entire company. 'At Sony, we are modifying our programs to deal less with state-sponsored [attacks] and more with socially-motivated hackers. It will be different,' said Chief Security Officer Brett Wahlin."

Comments

*clap* *clap*

[FrozenFood]

good for them

pity I wont buy another sony product ever again.

Re:*clap* *clap*

[Anonymous Coward]

I would use the term "corporate entitlement" for it. They think the world owes them money because they produce luxury products. Bioware are doing exactly the same thing when their latest title has a bunch of shortcuts and removed (unless you pay extra) content. But in their head space they are entitled to do whatever they want and you are just a source of income who is allowed no opinion or input.

Corporations have figured out the public doesn't listen to the news any more. Their own greed is too high and self control too low, so Sony can pretty much piss in your face and demand you pay for it and the public will only see a shower and pay the price.

Re:*clap* *clap*

[Aerorae]

Isn't that kinda how these big businesses work in general these days? Microsoft, Apple, Sony, Samsung, Motorola, Oracle, Intel, Dell, etc? I guess I'm just saying if someone has an issue with Sony they probably have an issue with the whole industry & it's practices, not /just/ Sony...

Re:Wrong way of thinking

[Sir_Sri]

That seems utterly impractical. The barrier to entry for attempting to hack is sufficiently low that any big company will offend people eventually, no matter what it does. Made a game I don't like, use boxes that are too large for shipping? Price a product some jackass feels entitled to at a point more than they can afford. Etc. etc. etc.

Sure, sony has earned a lot of their current hate. But every company has to realize that they will offend someone eventually, if nothing else than the thrill of trying to hack a big company.

From http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2011/index.html
The largets US Companies in 2011
Wal-Mart Stores
Exxon Mobil
Chevron
ConocoPhillips
Fannie Mae
General Electric
Berkshire Hathaway
General Motors
Bank of America
Ford Motor

I challenge you to find anyone on that list that hasn't pissed off a lot of people, intentionally or otherwise, and legitimately or otherwise, but there are still a lot of angry people at them. And you can keep going down the list.

Sony isn't any different, and even if they change their ways, people will still believe them evil a decade from now. But I don't think you do 100 billion dollars a year in business and not make enough people angry to cause all sorts of hacking problems. Even Warren Buffet has made enemies because he thinks he makes too much money and should be taxed more.

Sony's CSO has invented time travel!

[dstone]

TFA claims that Sony's new CSO, Brett Wahlin, "served as a counter-intelligence officer in the US Military for eight years during the Cold War." The final year of the cold war is generally agreed to be 1991, when the Soviet Union dissolved. This suggests he started working as a C-I officer no later than 1984. Yet the photo in his recent bio suggests he's in his early 40s now. So either 1) he's a prodigy and worked for the US military during high school, or 2) he can travel in time. Either way, the hacktivists might have met their match! Well played, Sony.