Rumour: Sony declined hacker group’s offer to buy back stolen data
Update: Sony Comm Boss, Patrick Seybold, has declined being made any such offer by hacker groups.
Original Story: Things are looking bleak for Sony. A recent rumour doing the rounds suggests that hackers are offering to sell the entire database of 2.2 million credit card details which they have stolen from Sony’s network during the hack.
The rumour was first mentioned in Trend Micro’s security expert, Kevin Stevens Twitter account, he informed that hackers who breached into PSN are trying to sell off the credit card details stolen from Sony.
The hackers that hacked PSN are selling off the DB. They reportedly have 2.2 million credits cards with CVVs
Kevin also made the remarkable disclosure that the hackers had actually tried to sell back the database to Sony, an offer which the company refused to take up.
Sony was supposedly offered a chance to buy the DB back but didn’t
The database is said to include full user details for each card – first and surname; address; phone number; email address; email password; date of birth; and credit card number, expiry state and security code.Another strong indication, is a chat log and several screens apparently taken from hacker and credit card fraud communities, both of which can be found on PSX-Scene.
However, in an FAQ posted on various PlayStation websites worldwide, the company said that
“Your credit card security code (sometimes called a CVC or CSC number) has not been obtained because we never requested it from anyone who has joined the PlayStation Network or Qriocity, and is therefore not stored anywhere in our system.”
Sony also stated that:
“The entire credit card table was encrypted and we have no evidence that credit card data was taken.”
This means, either the hackers are trying to fool someone into buying the database by lying about having credit card security codes, or Sony isn’t speaking the truth about the information being encrypted.
The latter scenario seems far less likely, as Sony would open itself to enormous lawsuits if it were found to be spreading misinformation regarding the breach. However, there are various reports coming up about people’s credit card details being misused, and one can’t confirm anything at this point of time.
The wisest thing to do for now, is to check with your bank if any fraudulent activities have been carried out with your credit card and take measures accordingly.
We’ll send Sony and email an ask for a comment regarding the matter, meanwhile let us know your thoughts below.
