Sony Sued For PlayStation Network Data Breach 404
suraj.sun writes "Like clockwork, the first lawsuit resulting from the security breach of the personal data of more than 75 million Sony PlayStation Network customers has been filed. The suit was filed today on behalf of Kristopher Johns, 36, of Birmingham, Ala., in the US District Court for the Northern District of California. Johns accuses Sony of not taking 'reasonable care to protect, encrypt, and secure the private and sensitive data of its users.' He also believes Sony took too long to notify him and other customers that their personal information had been exposed. Because of that, the complaint alleges, Sony did not allow its customers 'to make an informed decision as to whether to change credit card numbers, close the exposed accounts, check their credit reports, or take other mitigating actions.'"
Re:not taking reasonable care (Score:4, Insightful)
He got notified? (Score:5, Insightful)
Sadly, I know how this is going to turn out. There will be a class-action suit in which Sony is fined heavily. But the vast majority of the money will go to some shark lawyer, and the only thing the people affected by this will receive is a free 1-month subscription to PSN+. Actually, I'll be surprised if they even give us that much.
If this DOES go class-action, I will definitely be on the lookout for my notice to opt out. If I see any erroneous charges on my card stemming from this massive amount of incompetence, I want to retain my full legal right to bring my own suit against Sony where they will be required to provide me with credit monitoring and credit fraud protection. I'm sorry, but a boilerplate "we're sorry" and some token gesture are NOT going to cut it here.
Re:not taking reasonable care (Score:3, Insightful)
Thank you Mr. Armchair Expert!
DRM anyone? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:They sat on it for a week... (Score:5, Insightful)
Even someone who has your personal information for a few hours can cause havoc in your life, let alone for an entire week.
Check your EULA... you probably can't sue (Score:3, Insightful)
Our wonderful, conservative-activist Supreme Court just ruled today that any company may stick a line in their EULA stating that by using their product, you forfeit the right to sue, and must instead use a private arbiter of the corporation's choice. They based this decision on a 90 year old law that was written to cover maritime shipping disputes.
Of course, since most contracts these days state that the corporation has the right to change the terms at any time without notice, this basically means that you can no longer sue a company that you've entered into a contract with.
Still think you have rights? Not as long as a Republican holds office!
Re:Good FUCKING Grief... (Score:4, Insightful)
In a country where corporations like Sony effectively own lawmakers, criminal remedies are impossible. Civil cases involving "lawyer whores" are the only recourse allowed (short of vigilantism).
Are the grounds for this lawsuit even valid? (Score:3, Insightful)
Hmm, something not right here.
PSN is free, so it's hard to imagine how anyone is entitled to any compensation there unless it's through a goodwill gesture by Sony (which they definitely should do).
No proof yet any credit cards have actually been compromised. And before you all get puffy and worked up, literally, NO PROOF of any CC problems that can be linked to the PSN breach have been proven (yet).
There's no way the banks would allow Sony to have access to CC accounts without being regularly audited, never heard of any problems there. So I would think it's safe to assume they've been following safe business practices or else we would have heard something by now.
According to latest reports, Sony reported the possibility of account & CC details being compromised a little over a day after they found out. Difficult to claim that's an egregious length of time given the circumstances.
With all that plus the fact that it's common knowledge that Sony has been repeatedly targeted by hackers and thieves out of revenge for Sony having the audacity to protect their network and customers, this lawsuit is going to have a very difficult time making any headway.
So what is exactly this lawsuit about? Since this originates in the US (the most litigious country in the world) I say it's just more ambulance chasing i.e. business as usual.
Re:not taking reasonable care (Score:2, Insightful)
Smart man. I leave my car unlocked too so the crack-heads can just take the $1.27 from my ashtray and save me the trouble of buying a new car window every time I park out on the street.
Problem here is, it wasn't Sony's $1.27 that was lost. It was my stuff lost, and 77 million other people..... The biggest problem of all is that Sony did not alert their customers in a timely manner. Fuck Sony.