PSN Security Breach? Sony Resets PlayStation Network Passwords For PS4, PS3

Sony reset the passwords of users of its PSN (PlayStation Network) for online gaming, leaving many locked out of online play. Sony says it took action “purely as a precautionary measure," and that gamers have no reason to worry.

PlayStation owners began complaining in European support forums that they were unable to access PSN with their PS4 and PS3 consoles. When the gamers attempted to sign in to the PlayStation Network, they were told they had entered "incorrect login details."

A Sony administrator announced in the forum that access had been blocked for some users for their protection. The administrator told PSN users to reset their passwords if they saw the "incorrect login details" error message, EuroGamer first reported.

Sony also tweeted from its AskPlaystation account that the PSN password reset was "routine protection."

The event reminded some users of a network-wide PSN outage that occurred in 2011, where personal data was stolen from 77 million accounts stored on Sony’s servers. At the time, it was one of the largest data security breaches in history.

Here is what the administrator, under username SuperFastZombie, told the forum:

We monitor PSN account for any irregular activity. If such activity is detected we will sometimes reset passwords.

This was done purely as precautionary measure and there was no specific evidence that any accounts had be compromised.

Only a small number of users were affected by this and as I said this was precautionary so there is nothing specific to worry about.

I cant provide any further details as this would affect out ability to keep you guys safe.

International Business Times reached out to Sony for further comment regarding the issue and how many customers were affected. So far, it appears as though the issue has only affected PSN users on the PS3 and PS4 located in Europe.

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