PSN Back Up Online News Updates

Sony PlayStation Network gamers are anxiously wondering worldwide, whether Japan based Technology Products and Services Company can live up to its promise of restoring back its Cloud Based PlayStation Network and Qriocity services this week, or not.

Sony's U.S. Playstation Blog on Saturday assured users that some services will return "this week." In an official press release posted to the PlayStation blog in the early hours of Sunday morning, Sony revealed that it plans to phase in operation of PSN and Qriocity on a regional basis. Here is an except from the blog post:

Sony will shortly begin a phased restoration by region of PlayStation Network and Qriocity services, beginning with gaming, music and video services to be turned on.

On Sunday in a Press Conference in which he was badly confronted by angry users, Sony Highest Executive offered a deep apology and extended "welcome back" rewards to returning users, promising an increase security in the future.

When PSN is Back Up Online: What to Expect?

The initial phase of the rollout will include the following services:

1. Restoration of Online game-play across PS3 and PSP systems
2. This includes titles requiring online verification and downloaded games
3. Access to Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for PS3/PSP for existing subscribers
4. Access to account management and password reset
5. Access to download un-expired Movie Rentals on PS3, PSP and MediaGo
6. PlayStation Home
7. Friends List
8. Chat Functionality

Once PSN services are restored, users attempting to log in will be forced to change their password before they can log in. Note that your account password can only be changed on the same PS3 in which that account was activated, or through validated email confirmation.

When PSN is Back Up Online: Welcome Back Appreciation Program

Sony also detailed a ‘Welcome Back Appreciation Program’ for its users. The thank you package will include 30 free days of PSN Plus for every user, selected PlayStation entertainment content for free download (content will differ depending on your region), and 30 free days of Music Unlimited for Qriocity users. Sony says users can also expect additional "Welcome Back" entertainment and service offerings over the coming weeks.

Sony PlayStation Network Down and Consequent Damages

The company took the PSN offline over an "illegal and unauthorized intrusion" that compromised personal information from its massive database of 77 million user accounts as iTechWhiz has mentioned in its earlier post PSN Status: 80710092 Sony PlayStation Network Down after User Data Hacked.

There was also a late confession by the Sony representatives,  that the stolen user data includes 10 million credit cards details, prone to exploitation as a result of this Security Breach. "However, the data is encrypted" Sony innocently added. While it is obvious that for the hackers capable of exploiting a worldwide secure corporate network it not a rocket science to decipher/decrypt some Blowfish, AES, MD5, Triple-DES, SHA or even hybrid algorithm. So I do not see any way to avoid from the damage from loss of information and credibility for Sony.

Investigations on Sony PlayStation Network Hack

Sony says the investigation into what happened and the people behind the attacks is ongoing. However, Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President at Sony, spoke at the weekend about the breach and how it had affected the industry as a whole.

This criminal act against our network had a significant impact not only on our consumers, but our entire industry. These illegal attacks obviously highlight the widespread problem with cyber-security," he said. "We take the security of our consumers’ information very seriously and are committed to helping our consumers protect their personal data. In addition, the organization has worked around the clock to bring these services back online, and are doing so only after we had verified increased levels of security across our networks.

While investigating the hack, Sony discovered that its PC gaming service, Sony Online Entertainment, had also been affected. Though the SOE breach adds nearly 25 million more affected users to Sony's list of headaches, the company has not said how this development will affect plans to bring the PSN back online.
Sony is also working with the FBI to locate the source of the attack.

According to rumors, PSN storage was restored Monday night for some users in Japan. Sony, however, has not confirmed this and has not offered an exact date customers can expect PSN and SOE services to return.