‘Anonymous’ Hack Attack on Sony Sites Ends in Epic Failure

The hacktivist group Anonymous looked a little less fearsome today (April 11) after its latest attack fizzled out and its entire reason for staging the attack turned out to have been based on false pretenses.

Anonymous launched distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks on Sony’s PlayStation-related websites beginning last Monday.

The attacks protested Sony Computer Entertainment America’s (SCEA) lawsuit against hacker George Hotz, who’d cracked the encryption for the password that “unlocks” the PlayStation 3 and posted it online.

Gamers quickly complained that their favorite sites were unreachable, and so Anonymous shifted its targets to other Sony websites, which withstood the attacks.

As of this afternoon (April 11), the Sony Careers website was unreachable, but most other Sony sites were fine.

A source at one of Sony’s Web hosting providers told the tech blog Ars Technica that the Anonymous attacks "annoyed our network engineers," but were merely "medium strength."

So Anonymous has decided on a different tactic — a good, old-fashioned, 1960s-style sit-in of Sony retail outlets, as PC Magazine’s Sarah Yin reported.

A Facebook page dedicated to the boycott, planned for Saturday (April 16), has signed up nearly 2,500 people.

But another twist came today. Sony Computer Entertainment America and Hotz suddenly announced that they had settled the lawsuit.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

In fact, it turned out Hotz and SCEA had reached an agreement on March 31, days before the Anonymous attacks on Sony websites had even begun.

“It was never my intention to cause any users trouble or to make piracy easier,” Hotz said in the press release. “I’m happy to have the litigation behind me.”

Despite the settlement, terms of which were confidential, Hotz called for a boycott of Sony.

“I will never purchase another SONY product. I encourage you to do the same,” he posted on one of his blogs. “And if you bought something SONY recently, return it.”

As for the money people had donated to his legal defense fund, Hotz wrote in a comment to his own posting, “I will address the donations in a forthcoming post, and I think people will be happy.”

• Disgruntled Gamer Hacks Xbox Security Chief’s Account
• Hacker: U.S. Government Authorized My Crime Spree
• Security & Privacy Software Reviews