Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Xbox. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Xbox. Sort by date Show all posts

VOGH Exclusive: Xbox Live Outage Caused For Networking Misconfiguration, Not Hacker Attack

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 4/18/2013 06:08:00 pm

Microsoft Said Xbox Live Outage Caused For Networking Misconfiguration During Routine Maintenance, Not Hacker Attack 

Xbox Live -one of the world's most popular and usually very reliable gaming network which rarely has unexpected outages, nor does Microsoft ever take it down for any extended period of time. But accident occurs, and it happened in last Sunday. The software giant and the developer of Xbox - Microsoft has reported a significant Xbox Live outage, rendering the service unavailable since earlier last 13th afternoon, smack in the middle of the peak weekend usage period. The outage is preventing users from signing in to Xbox Live, blocking access to the online services normally available through the console. While acknowledging the issue, on their official Xbox Live Status page Microsoft said “There is still an issue members are having signing in to Xbox LIVE, we greatly appreciate you sticking it out with us while we work as hard as we can to get this problem fixed. Keep checking back here every 30 minutes for another update on our progress.” This update came from Microsoft at 3:30 Pacific time on 13th of April. As soon as this story get spotted, several hikes rises. Among this buzz, it was a few unnamed hacker who took credit of the Xbox outage, while declaring that a cyber attack. Another buzz which just got spread so quickly, was that the outage of Xbox Live network has been caused by hacker collective Anonymous.  Here we must have to say that those buzz have some solid reasons as couple of months ago Windows Azure faced an organized cyber attack which effected the service of Azure storage, Xbox Live and 52 other. And that outage or in other word service interruption stays for 12 long hours. But unlike earlier, this time the issue get resolved immediately. Within one hour all the service get restored and came back to its normal order. On the same Xbox Live Status page Microsoft said “If you were one of the members who was having issues signing in to Xbox LIVE, good news! This issue has been fixed! Thank you so much for your patience during this time, feel free to go enjoy your favorite games and content!”
So far we have discussed about the story of the outage and it's restoration. Now we will talk about the cause of this interruption. As I have said earlier that the rumor of hacker's attack was there which was claiming responsibility of the Xbox Live outage. But in reality it was not due to cyber attack but some internal network problems. In their official respond of the situation and those buzz Microsoft completely dines all those rumors and said  "The Xbox Live service outage on 13 April resulted from networking misconfiguration during routine maintenance and was in no way related to false claims of hacking the service." 
While talking about Xbox outage, we would like to remind you that - another world famous gaming console 'PlayStation' had fallen victim to cyber attacks. It was Anonymous who hit Sony PSN and caused massive outage, data leak and many other devastating damages. 







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Xbox Live Has Not Been Hacked, Said Microsoft

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 11/24/2011 12:30:00 am


Microsoft has denied claims that Xbox LIVE has been hacked, despite reports suggesting the online gaming service had suffered a security breach exposing user data. The company took to its official Facebook page after UK newspaper The Sun alleged gamers had lost between £100 and £20o each ($156-313); in fact, Microsoft clarified, victims had been the unfortunate quarry of a phishing scam. 
Microsoft is now apparently working with those Xbox LIVE users affected by the scams to re-secure their accounts, as well as suggesting that all gamers take care over what emails they open and what links they click on.

In a Statement Microsoft Said:-

"Xbox Live has not been hacked. Microsoft can confirm that there has been no breach to the security of our Xbox Live service. In this case, a number of Xbox Live members appear to have recently been victim of malicious 'phishing' scams  (ie. online attempts to acquire personal information such as passwords, user names and credit card details by purporting to be a legitimate company or person). The online safety of Xbox LIVE members remains of the utmost importance, which is why we consistently take measures to protect Xbox LIVE against ever-changing threats. As a result, we are currently:
Working closely with affected members who have been in touch with us to investigate and/or resolve any unauthorized changes to their accounts resulting from phishing scams;
Warning people against opening unsolicited e-mails which may contain spyware and other malware that can access personal information contained on their computer without their knowledge or permission;
Reminding all customers that they should be very careful to keep all personal information secure whenever online and never supply e-mail addresses, passwords or credit card information to strangers.
Microsoft remains vigilant at all times regarding the security of Xbox LIVE customers. As always, Xbox LIVE customers who have any queries or concerns should contact Xbox LIVE Customer Service on 0800 587 1102 or visit www.xbox.com/security."





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New Xbox 360 Media Remote & Wireless Bluetooth Headset

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 7/30/2011 06:24:00 pm


In Microsoft’s quest to take over the living room, they have announced two new media devices that will make interactions with the Xbox 360 more convenient.
The ongoing success of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 is partially due to the console’s performance as an all around media device. Gaming is definitely the number one focus, but other services make it attractive to non-gamers and casual players too. With uses outside of gaming in mind, Microsoft has revealed a new Media Remote and Wireless Bluetooth Headset that will be available for the Xbox 360 this fall.
The Media Remote will allow Xbox 360 owners to use a more traditional input device when operating their console for DVD, CD, and other media playback uses. The easy-to-use device will contain all the necessary buttons to navigate the Xbox 360 Dashboard, as well as all of the expected media playback controls. Additionally, the media remote will interface with most TVs and have the ability to power the TV on/off, adjust the volume, and change the TV’s input.
Clearly, Microsoft is pushing the Xbox 360 as the perfect device to have in one’s living room as an all around media center (sorry, no Blu-ray). This goes right along with the additional content such as YouTube and UFC – joining popular services like Netflix and Hulu Plus – announced during this year’s E3.
The remote is convenient, but I’m not sure how many people will want to pay for something that is such a minor convenience. I’ve never found using a Xbox 360 controller and TV remote in tandem annoying, or wished for a simpler solution.
The second accessory, a wireless headset with Bluetooth, is yet another device that integrates the Xbox 360 experience with other popular electronics. With the Bluetooth headset, gamers can both chat with their friends online, and easily switch over to answer calls from their mobile phone with the flip of a switch. The headset works with nearly all Bluetooth enabled devices and “Blue and green LED rings of light visually show which mode the device is in.” There are three sizes of ear gels and an ear loop to ensure the device remains comfortable throughout long gaming sessions. This new design is sleeker than the other Xbox 360 wireless headsets and certainly more practical than a wired headset.
It is interesting to see Microsoft further pursuing accessories that support the notion that the Xbox 360 is the best all around media device for the living room. The hurdle for each device will be whether consumers think the added convenience is worth the cost.
What do you think about these devices? Are they worth the money?

The Xbox 360 Media Remote and Wireless Bluetooth Headset will be available sometime in November, 2011 for $19.99 and $59.99 respectively.

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Microsoft fixed faulty Xbox 360 update by giving free console

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 5/24/2011 09:40:00 pm


Console gamers just can’t catch a break with the video game gods. This time, it is Xbox 360 gamers who can’t play their games. Some Xbox 360 owners are finding a “disk unreadable” or “disk unsupported” error after updating their consoles with the most recent update, where the only fix is to have their consoles replaced, according to TG Daily. At least Microsoft is proactively seeking out affected customers through Xbox LIVE and offering them a new Xbox 360 S (250 GB) plus a one-year free subscription to Xbox LIVE. Kotaku reports that Xbox gamer Avery Penn found out his console is eligible for a new one by email before his DVD drive failed and could no longer load his games. His 360 60GB Pro was bought in 2009 and has a LiteOn DVD drive. Microsoft is certainly learning from Sony’s recent troubles with disgruntled gamers who were locked out of the PSN for nearly a month. According to Kotaku, this update “reflashes the DVD drive to a new stock firmware, and adds support for new XGD3 disk format. It’s this update that allows an extra GB of usable storage on game discs.” Eurogamer’s Digital Foundry blog believes Microsoft is not just being altruistic in offering customers new consoles: the new update is supposed to beef up the console’s ability to detect pirated disks/non-retail disks and prevent them from playing the full game in the future. If your 360 is affected by the firmware update, contact Xbox Support here or DM XboxSupport on Twitter for assistance. Unfortunately, there is no comprehensive list available to check the impact the update may have on your console before you install it. Microsoft did acknowledge the problem “is not specific to older or newer versions of Xbox 360” so there is only one way to find out. Good luck! (Note: This problematic update is not the upcoming one that will allow Xbox LIVE customers to purchase content through their PayPal accounts.)

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Microsoft gave comment about LulzSec

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 6/18/2011 09:37:00 pm



Microsoft has commented on LulzSec's posting of emails and addresses, some of which may be associated with Xbox Live accounts. Microsoft has sent us this comment on the data, which is an info dump and not a hack.
"This group appears to have posted a list of thousands of potential email addresses and passwords, and encouraged users to try them across various online sites like Xbox LIVE in the event one of the users happens to use the same password and email address combination.  At this time we do not have any evidence Xbox LIVE has been compromised. However we take the security of our service seriously and work on an ongoing basis to improve it against evolving threats."
The group dumped a list of 62,000 emails and passwords on a file sharing site (the list has been taken down multiple times) for accounts of sites and services like Xbox Live, PayPal, WOW, and much more (confirmed on LulzSec's Twitter, even). We've also had one poor reader tell us the credit card attached to his Xbox Live account has already been hit for $100 and the account's password changed.Just to clarify: LulzSec hasn't hacked Xbox Live, they've simply released people's emails and passwords that may pertain to an Xbox Live or PayPal or WOW, etc. account.  Hacker group LulzSec has released emails and passwords for some people's Xbox Live account info, among other sites and services. LulzSec has also been involved in attacks on Nintendo, Minecraft, EVE Online, and (of course) Sony, among others. And for those of you keeping score out there, hactivists Anonymous deal more in denial of service attacks, while exposing user info is one of LulzSec's deals. Whatever the method or rationale, though, it's annoying. 

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Xbox Under Attack, Multiple Accounts Have Been Hijacked To Purchase FIFA 11/12

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 10/18/2011 05:48:00 pm


Xbox Live is under attack by thieves who appear to have an undying love of EA's FIFA series. An alarming number of gamers have apparently reported that their Xbox Live accounts have been hijacked and used to purchase hundreds of dollars worth of FIFA 11 and 12 content. According to Ars Technica, gamers are experiencing a strangely specific ordeal; their accounts are hijacked, then used to purchase FIFA 11/12 and thousands of MS Points spent on in-game content for the footy sims.
Microsoft claims that Xbox Live has not been compromised, but says it's dealing with complaints of unauthorised transactions directly.
Here's the full statement issued to Ars:-
"We do not have any evidence the Xbox LIVE service has been compromised. We take the security of our service seriously and work on an ongoing basis to improve it against evolving threats. However, a limited number of members have contacted us regarding unauthorized access to their accounts by outside individuals. We are working with our impacted members directly to resolve any unauthorized changes to their accounts. As always, we highly recommend our members follow the Xbox LIVE Account Security guidance provided at www.xbox.com/security to protect your account."

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Lulzsec is now targeting Xbox Live, Facebook, Twitter

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 6/20/2011 11:09:00 am




Hacker group LulzSec has announced that they’ll be targeting Xbox Live, Facebook and Twitter, and even claim to have stolen a file with usernames and passwords last night from Live and posted it. However, said file was removed before it could be verified.
Xbox Live has been up, but the Xbox Live site and Xbox.com had been up and down in the past few weeks, which could be Microsoft’s reaction to hacking attempts.
However, LulzSec has announced on its Twitter feed that they were going to target Facebook and Social Networking accounts, gloating, “Envelope yourself in the sickening realization that you secretly love fucking someone’s Facebook life beyond repair.”

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Microsoft Will Give New Xbox Consoles To Victims of XGD3 Firmware Upgrade

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 5/20/2011 06:47:00 pm





Microsoft has promise to hand out brand new top-end Xbox 360 consoles to anyone who fins their own hardware bricked by the latest firmware update.
Well... sort of. The software giant is introducing a new disc format to the games console and a handful of the millions of boxes out there will not be able to cope with the XGD3 discs which can squeeze in an extra gigabyte of data, according to thinq
The dashboard update, which starts rolling out tomorrow, updates the firmware in the onboard optical drive but some consoles will not support the update.
"We are able to detect this issue over Xbox LIVE," a Microsoft spokesperson said, "and are proactively reaching out to customers that may be impacted to replace their console."
Microsoft is also asking those who receive error messages saying that a disc is 'unsupported' after the update contact their support department for assistance.
Microsoft might seem uncharacteristically generous in this case, but has pointed out that the replacement programme will affect 'a very small number' of customers.
The company also confirmed that anyone declining to install the update in order to keep underhanded hacks in place will be excommunicated from Xbox Live.

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XECUTER X360USB PRO HDD Hacker Tool Released

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 4/24/2011 02:31:00 pm

 
The last four weeks have seen an unprecedented response to the new X360USB PRO product and the feedback has been nothing short of sensational. Stocks have been wiped out time and time again, the production lines are working 24/7 and resellers have reported record sales � outselling any competitors products by up to 100:1 !
Well, development is always ongoing and we are happy to announce the next level of features and capabilities with the release of the new X360USB PRO HDD HACKER TOOL.
Not only is the X360USB PRO able to communicate with DVD Drives by utilizing built in PortIO and WinAPI functions giving a level of speed and access never seen before, but it can now also connect to Hard Drives and manipulate the data for the first time over USB using any Windows 32bit or 64bit operating system with just a few simple clicks.
What does this mean for you ?
You can now convert any off-the-shelf 2.5″ SATA Hard Drive and convert it to be 100% XBOX 360 Compatible, saving you a TON of money !
The X360USB PRO HDD HACKER TOOL currently supports the entire range of Western Digital 2.5″ SATA Hard Drives, however we will be able to add a range of other manufacturer�s and models in future updates.
All you need is the HDSS.BIN file from an original XBOX360 Hard Drive (which can be easily extracted using the X360USB PRO) and use it to convert your WD SATA Drive. The following guide will show you just how easy it is.
Note: The size of the drive is limited to the size of your HDSS.BIN file (e.g. if you have a 250GB HDSS.BIN and you flash it to a 320Gb Hard Drive � then the drive will recognize in the Xbox 360 as a 250GB drive)
To support the the new HDD capabilities of the X360USB PRO, we have begun to manufacture a range of new products to give you a clean and professional Hard Drive update experience.
* DUMP
To extract the HDSS.BIN from an original XBOX 360 Hard Drive
* FLASH
Flashes a HDSS.BIN to your 3rd party Hard Drive and saves a copy of the drives original sectors to UNDO.BIN
* RESTORE
Restores the Hard Drive�s firmware and Max LBA to it�s original state using the UNDO.BIN
* PARTITION
Partitions and formats the drive to XBOX 360 specifications[/QUOTE]
Official Site: http://team-xecuter.com
Download: here
Guide/Tutorial: here

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Hackers Hit Microsoft Windows Azure Causing 12 Hour Outage, Affecting Xbox & 52 Other Services

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 2/27/2013 08:17:00 pm

Hackers Hit Microsoft Windows Azure Causing 12 Hour Outage, Affecting Xbox & 52 Other Services 

Windows Azure the cloud computing platform of Microsoft for building, deploying and managing applications and services through a global network of Microsoft-managed datacenters  faced an unwanted disaster due to organized cyber attack which interrupted its service world wide. While looking at the scenario the Redmond based software giant sincerely apologize for the interruption and any issues it has caused and declared that they will  refund Windows Azure customers impacted by the said outage last week caused by an expired SSL certificate. The Windows Azure Storage outage affected at least 52 services, including Xbox Live on Thursday night and Friday. 
In a blog post while describing the situation Microsoft said - "HTTP traffic was unaffected but the event impacted a number of Windows Azure services that are dependent on Storage.  We executed the repair steps to update the SSL certificate on the impacted clusters and availability was restored to >99% worldwide by 1:00 AM PST on February 23.  At 8:00 PM PST on February 23, we completed the restoration effort and confirmed full availability worldwide. Given the scope of the outage, we will proactively provide credits to impacted customers in accordance with our SLA. The credit will be reflected on a subsequent invoice.  Our teams are also working hard on a full root cause analysis (RCA), including steps to help prevent any future reoccurrence."






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Department of Homeland Security & U.S. Navy Hires Company To Hack Into Video Game Consoles

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 4/07/2012 10:01:00 pm

Department of Homeland Security & U.S. Navy Hires Company To Hack Into Video Game Consoles 

The U.S. government has hired a California-based company to hack into video game consoles, such as Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, to watch criminals, especially child predators, and learn how to collect evidence against them. The $177,000 contract with Obscure Technologies of San Rafael, Calif., is being executed by the U.S. Navy on behalf of the Department of Homeland Security because of the Navy’s expertise in the field, officials said. Under the contract, Obscure Technologies will purchase used gaming systems from abroad that are believed to hold “sensitive information from previous users” and try to hack into them. Obscure’s experts will then report back on how they gained access to the systems, provide instructions to obtain users’ chat room activity, and even report back on the data gleaned, according to the contract and tasking documents. Obscure will also purchase new systems and construct a device that can capture data and activity, the documents state.
Over the past few decades, video game systems have grown in sophistication and capabilities by leaps and bounds. Consoles like the Nintendo Wii, Sony PlayStation 3, and Microsoft Xbox can be found in many U.S. households and are popular among servicemembers, with Internet access and hard drives that rival personal computers.
With these advances, Garfinkel said, the systems have become a playground of illegal activity for criminals. In 2008, law enforcement agencies contacted the DHS’s Science and Technology Directorate and requested help in analyzing gaming systems seized during court-authorized searches, Garfinkel said. While some tools exist to extract data from gaming consoles, the consoles are hard to crack as they are designed with copyright protection systems, he said. Navy and DHS officials declined to comment on whether the gaming consoles of Americans will ever be hacked and monitored. They also declined to comment as to whether the system manufacturers had been approached about this research.


-Source (Stars & Stripes)


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Nintendo Servers Hacked, Next target XBOX

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 6/05/2011 10:49:00 pm


Nintendo reports that a Web server for its U.S. unit was hacked. The attack on Nintendo shows that this new era of hacking isn't going to end any time soon, and should serve as a wakeup call for other companies that were hoping this was purely a Sony issue. To be fair, the Nintendo incident is nothing compared to the Sony debacle. It's like comparing the United States "invasion" of Grenada, with the United States bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki. While Sony has been hacked repeatedly for the past month--compromising sensitive information from more than 100 million user accounts in the process, the Nintendo hack appears to have yielded a simple server configuration file, and not exposed any sensitive data.
Hackers continue to take down networks for hacktivism bragging rights. The current plague of hacks and network takedowns is not limited to game console vendors, nor is it limited to one hacking collective. LulzSec is dominating headlines right now after attacking PBS, the FBI, hacker magazine 2600, and now Nintendo, but there are other groups out there as well--like the notorious Anonymous.
2600 seems to have nailed it on the head when it tweeted, "Hacked websites, corporate infiltration/scandal, IRC wars, new hacker groups making global headlines - the 1990s are back!"
Yes. That seems to sum things up. Granted, the vast majority of these attacks are driven by "hacktivism"--a pseudo-noble attempt to stand up for an issue and make a statement. But, there is a fine, fine line between that "Robin Hood complex" vigilantism, and just being a cyber thug.
The problem with hacktivism is that there are hackers representing both sides. While hacker groups battle it out online for bragging rights, innocent users are caught in the crossfire. I can sympathize with some of the hacktivist causes, but regardless of my opinion of Sony, or any other organization, I can't condone or support exposing sensitive information of users, or even interrupting services that those users have paid for and enjoy using.
While malware has evolved from script kiddies in search of bragging rights to organized crime in search of money, hacktivism is bringing back the "Wild West" days of the Internet. The thing is, hacktivism is just hacking--it's easy to rationalize by making it about trying to stand up for an issue or make some sort of statement, but really the only statement it makes is "look how great I am--I got in to your network."
The days of "All Your Base Are Belong to Us" are back. Watch your back Xbox Live, you're probably next as some group attempts to "outdo" LulzSec.

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Microsoft Planned To Release Skype Application For Windows Mobile

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 2/27/2012 07:40:00 pm

Microsoft Planned To Release Skype Application For Windows Mobile
Microsoft Corporation has planned to release Skype video-calling application for its Windows Phone. The application will be avalable on April this year. Terry Myerson, head of the Redmond, Washington-based company’s mobile business, said in an interview last week. It will unveil the software today at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, and release a version for beta testers. Terry Myerson, head of the Redmond, Washington-based company’s mobile business, said in an interview last week. It will unveil the software today at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, and release a version for beta testers.
Microsoft bought Skype to gain customers and enhance its existing products -- such as Windows phones and Xbox game consoles, along with Internet-calling and videoconferencing software. Skype customers made more than 300 billion minutes of calls last year, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer said in January. The service, which handles both voice and video calls, is the top provider of international calling. Windows Phone has just 2 percent of the mobile operating- system market, and lags behind Apple Inc. and Google Inc. in providing apps. Both those rivals already have Skype apps.
Microsoft bought Skype to gain customers and enhance its existing products -- such as Windows phones and Xbox game consoles, along with Internet-calling and videoconferencing software. Skype customers made more than 300 billion minutes of calls last year, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer said in January. The service, which handles both voice and video calls, is the top provider of international calling.
Windows Phone has just 2 percent of the mobile operating- system market, and lags behind Apple Inc. and Google Inc. in providing apps. Both those rivals already have Skype apps.




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Sony blames hacktivist group Anonymous for Playstation Network intrusion

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 5/05/2011 10:47:00 am


File this one under “things not to do when dealing with massive network outages.” Sony has kicked the hornet’s nest today by blaming Anonymous, a massive network of hackers that regularly takes up activist causes, for indirectly causing a breach of security in its PlayStation Network (PSN) online gaming network that led to the attack that brought PSN down.
While the company isn’t blaming Anonymous for the attack itself, it said the hackers that stole gobs of sensitive data about PSN users were able to break into the network while it was defending itself from denial of service attacks orchestrated by Anonymous. Anonymous took on Sony after the company went after famed PS3 hacker George Hotz, who reverse engineered the PlayStation 3 to run unauthorized programs.
When the PlayStation Network crashed on April 21, Anonymous said it was not behind the attack. Instead, the hacktivist group said, “Sony is incompetent.” But an observer of the IRC forum used by members of Anonymous said the attackers behind this current Sony outage appear to have learned their methods from Anonymous’ activities of two weeks ago.
This really is not the time for Sony to start playing with fire. Anonymous doesn’t regularly respond to blame and threats, but because the network of hackers has taken on Sony before, there is no guarantee Sony’s latest accusation won’t spark some kind of retaliation. Anonymous has proven time and again that it is a force to be reckoned with. Sony has to focus on beefing up its network, not trying to shift blame around and incite more attacks against the already feeble network.
Hackers attacked the PSN on April 19, forcing the Japanese company to bring down the network, which has more than 77 million registered users. The nightmare then continued after hackers broke into the company’s Station.com site, which serves as a host for its PC games like Everquest. Hackers were able to steal information from as many as 24.6 million accounts on that site, according to Sony. In all, more than 100 million accounts might have been compromised.
The PSN breach was a massive security gaffe that has caused the U.S. government to get involved and demand answers — such as who attacked the network and what users were affected. Sony has sent warnings to PSN users about the possible credit card theft. The whole ordeal spawned an apology from Sony that lasted more than an hour and a half.
The network has been down for more than a week, denying 77 million registered gamers the ability to play online games, watch movies, listen to music or download other entertainment to their PlayStation 3 consoles and PlayStation Portable handhelds. The PlayStation Network is a critical service that competes with Microsoft’s Xbox Live online gaming service — as well as other online gaming services. There are also 948 games now available in the PlayStation Network store, as well as 4,000 pieces of add-on content for games.

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#OpIsrael Continues: KHS & MLA Hacked Several Israeli Govt Websites & Leaked Sensitive Data

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 4/07/2013 05:20:00 pm

Muslim Liberation Army (MLA) & Kosova Hacker Security (KHS) Joins Operation Isreal & Hacked Several Israeli Govt Websites & Leaked Sensitive Data

Operation Israel the devastating hacking rampage continues and becoming more and more venturesome for the Israeli cyber space. In the last week of March, it was dangerous hacker collective group Anonymous who called the operation also dubbed #OpIsrael, where the hacker group vows to erase Israel from the Internet. And as expected this is happening, the first quake came from Turkey-based Marxist hacker group named RedHack and Anonymous, where they targeted Israeli intelligence agency Mossad and breached personal data of 35K officials. Operation Israel, was not among those typical rampage of Anonymous, here Anon called other hackers from different part of of the spectrum to join. First it was RedHack who responded, and now the Muslim Liberation Army lead by Pakistani hacker Hitcher, along with Kosova Hacker's Security & few other Albanian hacker's community joined #OpIsrael. 
Yesterday it was Hitcher from Muslim Liberation Army (MLA) who targeted Israel’s Ministry of National Infrastructures (MNI). The hacker managed to breach the server of Israel Ministry and defaced several website belongs to Israel Ministry of Infrastructures. The attack took place at yesterday late night, but still at the time of writing the news, several Israel MNI websites are not performing. Not only MNI, as per sources several other high profile and Israeli government sites have also been taken down in this round attack. While covering this hack of Hitcher, we must have to recap the previous hack of  Pakistan hackers who are constantly against Israel (for Gaza issue) causing massive cyber attack against leading IT industry of Israel and other high profile Israeli sites. Just a couple of months ago, the world seen what it call the black day in the history if Israeli cyber space where another Pak hackers community hacked the main domain controller of Israel, which causes a massive hack against almost all the big Israeli sites such as government, MSN, Bing, Live, Skype, Microsoft Store, BBC, CNN, Coca-Colla, XBOX, Windows, Intel & many more. 


During the hacking rampage, Hitcher delivered the following message - 
“We are outraged at the Palestine present condition and the Illegal occupation of Palestinian Land By the Zionist Israelis. This attack is in response to the Injustice against the Palestinian people. Occupied Palestinian land under the guise of residential settlements are being increased. Palestinians are deprived of their basic human rights. International Aid workers are stopped from providing any humanitarian assistance to the people. The International community and media is not allowed to bring facts to world as due to strict restrictions” 

On the other hand, Kosova Hacker's Security along with few other Albanian hacker's community performed, what it called a demolishing cyber attack, that caused huge damage to the Israeli cyber space. During the attack Kosova Hacker's Security also known as KHS hit several important Israeli government & commercial websites such as  Civil Aviation Authority, Israel Police, Ministry of Health and many more. KHS caused damage to those websites, not by doing defacement by causing data leak. KHS hacked and exposed thousands of sensitive data, including full name, email-id, passwords and other confidential information of those said Israeli websites. All those leaked data have been made available by the hackers in a website called pentagoncrew.com All those hacks have been performed under the banner of Operation Israel also dubbed #OpIsrael for the cause of Gaza. For instance, here we can recap the hack of Kosova Hackers Security (KHS) where they hacked and exposed personal data of 35,000 Israeli people. 

At conclusion, we want to say that, at the time when Anonymous first called Operation Israel, Israeli government presumed that they have taken the threat very seriously and from the government end it has been  stated that they will take almost every steps to avoid any kind of disaster. Now after observing the above scenario it is clear that Israel Government have completely failed to protect their cyber space, in spite of having precaution. Also another thing get spot light, that is different hackers community have already came under a single shade in order to hit Israel against Gaza & Palestine issue. Today is the historical 7th April, I mean the day which Anonymous promised to erase Israel from the Internet. So the clock is running, lets see what more is about to come.  for the time stay tuned with VOGH to get all the latest update on this story and also other cyber issues. 







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Apple Working On TV With Integrated Voice/Motion Controller & Gaming Console

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 4/17/2012 12:29:00 pm

Apple Working On TV With Integrated Voice/Motion Controller & Gaming Console

Apple is planning an assault on the living room with a TV that will come equipped with an Apple-branded, Kinect-like video game console. According to sources Apple is working on a television set with an iTunes-integrated touch screen remote and Siri-like voice command technology. The TV set will be coming before the end of 2012. Rumors and patents have said as much for the past year, so that’s nothing new. But that’s not all we’ve heard. Also it has come to light that Apple’s television set will come with an Apple-branded, Kinect-like video game console. The interface will rely heavily on motion and touch controls. The rumor gained more traction following claim made by Walter Isaccson in Steve Jobs’ biography that the late Apple CEO would ‘like to create an integrated television set that is completely easy to use’ that would ‘ seamlessly synced with all of your devices and with iCloud. ‘Jobs also claimed to have ‘finally cracked’ the user interface problem to make the whole package easy to use.
Here comes few Doubts:-
  • Outside of the iOS platform (iPhone and iPad), Apple isn’t known as a gaming company.
  • A TV with a built-in voice and motion controller and a games console? How much is this thing going to retail for exactly?
  • The games console market is tightly stitched up by Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo. Breaking into this new market would be extremely difficult.
  • Valve does have a portfolio of Mac games, but not enough to create a new ecosystem for a games console.
  • Apart from branding, what differentiates an Apple games experience from PC/Mac/Xbox 360/PS3?
  • Wouldn’t it make more sense for Apple to bring iOS games into the living room through an updated Apple TV set top box? There’s a massive ecosystem of games here ready to exploit, along with a healthy developer base.
  • That said, folks who own an iPhone/iPad and an Apple TV device can use AirPlay to put games on any HDMI-enabled TV without the need for an Apple-branded TV or an Apple-branded games console. Where does a console fit into the picture?

-Source (Cut of Mac, Forbes, Rumor) 





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LulzSec Guy Ryan gets bail, but he cannot use the Internet

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 6/29/2011 05:08:00 am



Even though LulzSec has now disbanded and rejoined as part of Anonymous, that doesn’t mean their past hacks have been forgotten about. Early last week teenager and LulzSec member Ryan Cleary was arrested in the UK as it was claimed he is the “mastermind” of the hacking collective. A week later and he is out on bail, but under strict instructions not to access the Internet. That’s becoming quite a difficult thing to do nowadays. He won’t be allowed near a PC unless the Ethernet ports and wireless are disabled. A smartphone is out of the question, as is the Xbox, PS3, Wii, DS, PSP, 3DS. How about watching TV? Sure, as long as his house doesn’t have a new flatscreen with Internet out-the-box.
Cleary may not care much as at least he’s no longer sitting in a cell 24 hours a day. But his troubles are far from over. As well as no Internet access he is electronically tagged and under a curfew each day. He also has to face charges of hacking into several websites including the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA). We’ve also learned that Cleary is a recluse and suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome, just like Gary McKinnon the man who is fighting against extradition for breaking into U.S. military computers.
LulzSec has denied that anyone in their group has been arrested, but we have no evidence to back this up. On the other hand the police have someone they are sure is part of the hacking group, as well as being associated with Anonymous. If Cleary is a member then he could have in his possession detailed accounts of other members and what they got up to as a group. As the police also took his computer hardware we should know soon enough if there’s anything usable as more arrests will be made.

-News Source (geek.com)

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Microsoft released Kinect SDK beta for Windows

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 6/17/2011 09:00:00 am


Microsoft has only encouraged and embraced this hacking, and awhile back they announced the SDK that has been released today – albeit a little late. The SDK released now is completely free for non-commercial applications, and is intended for Academics and Enthusiasts. Kinect has seen a large enthusiast community around it despite the fact that till now it was limited to the XBOX 360. Open source drivers have been written, in so far that the upcoming Linux kernel will support the device. While the Kinect's depth sensing and motion tracking prowess has been developed to make the next generation of games more interactive, its true potential lies beyond just gaming. In the time since the Kinect's release, even before the release of this free SDK for the Kinect, people have been hacking together innovative projects that show the true potential of this technology. It makes the Kinect seem like a worthy even if you don’t like the concept of playing computer games using your body as a controller. The Kinect has been hacked to do everything, from simulating a 'Minority Report' like interface, to helping the blind and rescuing earthquake victims. Now the Kinect's reach is bound to increase even more thanks to he official SDK. As Anoop Gupta, a scientist at Microsoft Research said, “The Kinect for Windows SDK opens up a world of possibilities to developers who want to unleash the power of Kinect technology on Windows. We can’t wait to see what this community will create as we work together to build more natural, intuitive computing experiences.” Microsoft is releasing the SDK with support for “Raw Sensor Streams” from the multiple sensors on the Kinect (RGB camera, depth sensor, multi-array microphone), “Skeletal Tracking” for up to two people, and “Advanced Audio Capabilities” that will allow developers to identify the sound source, and recognize speech. 

The SDK also includes documentation, and is easy to install on Windows 7.

A commercial version of the SDK will also be offered in the future, and Microsoft is probably using this beta release a means to get feedback that can be incorporated before the final release.

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Israeli Domain of MSN, Bing, Skype, Microsoft Store, BBC, CNN & Many More High Profile Israeli Sites Hacked

Posted by Avik Sarkar On 11/21/2012 01:17:00 am

Israeli Domain of MSN, Bing, Skype, Microsoft Store, BBC, CNN & Many More High Profile Israeli Sites Hacked

More hackers taking part in the Israeli rampage dubbed Operation Israel. As soon as the story of bombing and air strike in Gaza get spotted on the social networks, we have seen immediate protest coming from almost every part of the world. In case of digital bombing, then it was first Anonymous who called Operation Israel, then hackers from different part of the world joined and contributed in this combined protest. So far we have seen along with Anon, Pakistani hacker Hitcher from Muslim Liberation Army, Indian hacker Godzilla, & Kosovo Hackers Security have played vital role in this rampage. But now the scenario is going from bad to worse for Israeli cyber space, as a group of Pakistani hackers hit a large number of high profile Israeli domain. Those big giants who have fallen victim in this round of cyber attack from Pakistan are MSN, Bing, Live, Skype, Microsoft Store, BBC, CNN, Coca-Colla, XBOX, Windows, Intel, Philips, Israeli Parliament, Citi Bank and few more. According to sources more than 44 million hacking attempts have been made on Israeli government web sites since Wednesday. Attempts on defense related sites have been the highest, while 10 million attempts have been made on the site of Israel's president, 7 million on the Foreign Ministry and 3 million on the site of the prime minister.

Complete List:-
pm.parliament.co.il        
www.skype.co.il 
www.cnn.co.il 
intelcore.co.il 
www.msn.org.il 
passport.org.il 
www.microsoftstore.co.il 
intelatom.co.il 
www.opel.co.il 
philips.co.il 
bing.co.il 
bbc.org.il 
pantene.co.il 
paypass.co.il 
amazonunbox.co.il 
windowslive.co.il 
windows.co.il 
www.nbcuni.co.il 
citibank.co.il 
blog.fanta.co.il 
blog.sprite.co.il 
sprite.org.il 
xbox360.co.il 
www.xboxfusion.co.il 
cocacola.co.il 
coke.co.il 
www.xboxignite.co.il 
www.intelappup.co.il 
www.intel.co.il 
live.co.il 
solarwinds.co.il 
live.org.il 
www.msn.co.il 

Both the screen shot of the deface page and Zone-H mirror is saying that four hackers from Pakistan named 1337, H4x0rL1f3, ZombiE_KsA & Invectus were behind this massive cyber attack. Though a post on popular hackers forum named Sec4ever we came to know that ZombiE_KsA denied his relation with this hack. As usual self claimed famous security news blog, The Hacker News, tried to do a publicity stunt, while morphing the original news. Chasing fake publicity and money, the ready made source of news, also known as The Hacker News forgot the importance of  the situation in Gaza.
According to the view of VOGH, it hardly matters who take part in this hack, but what matters is that, a few human stand for humanity & humanity is beyond any religion, any cast and any color. So far the world have seen an instance of cruelty and inhumane of Israeli army, where the people of Gaza have been tortured brutally. The peace loving people across the world have already stood against this relentless practice. And when Anonymous called Operation Israel, that protest became a digital bombing. We the entire VOGH team salute those people across the globe, who have actively taken part in this protest. Its our world, its our home, and all the people in it are our family, so its our foremost responsibility to take care those members and stand with them. 






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