Sony’s beleaguered online services (specifically the Playstation Network, media download and streaming service Qriocity, and PC gaming network Sony Online Entertainment) have entered their third week offline, with Sony yesterday missing their promised restoration date and begging for forgiveness from their increasingly weary and irritated customers.
In an open letter to customers on the Playstation Blog, Sony CEO Howard Stringer apologised for the continued downtime, saying “I know this has been a frustrating time for all of you.” Although Sir Howard stopped short of offering an updated date customers could expect the services to come back online, he did indicate it would be soon –
“In the coming days, we will restore service to the networks and welcome you back to the fun. I wanted to personally reach out and let you know that we are committed to serving you to the very best of our ability, protecting your information better than ever, and getting you back to what you signed up for – all the games and great entertainment experiences that you expect from Sony.”
Sony also announced they would be offering $1 million in identity theft protection for all their customers in the US, with users in other locales being offered similar deals in the near future
The statement comes amid rumours that hackers are planning a third attack on the electronics giant – ironically as punishment for their failures in handling the current crisis.
Although Sony’s initial handling of the hacks – which resulted in the loss of over 100 million customers’ personal information and an unknown amount of credit card and direct debit information – was decidedly lacking, the Japanese company have stepped up their PR game and are now communicating regularly with their customers – however no amount of goodwill can make up for the embarrassment and loss of faith resulting from such a huge breach. Investigations into the intrusions are now taking place in a number of countries, and we can see the legal ramifications of Sony’s apparent security failings rumbling on for a long time yet.
