In a press release issued today on the Sony website, it was announced that the PlayStation Network would be fully restored by the end of June 1, 2011. This announcement excludes Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea. Once they have the services restored, the PlayStation Store will be releasing their “Welcome Back Package” to all registered PlayStation Network Subscribers. This is good news for anyone who has been following this story. Ever since the network went down on April 20, 2011, people have been wondering if their private information is safe, and how long it will take to restore the service. It has been a rocky road for Sony, partial system restorations, discovering new backdoors in their system, etc. but it looks like we are at the end of the road.
This should not be the end of the story. As services return to PSN, it is important to remember some basic online safety lessons. I followed each of these rules, and while I missed having access to the PSN, I knew my online information was safe.
- DO NOT save your credit card on any online system. Many people learned the hard way that the people who have your sensitive information cannot always take care of it.
- DO NOT share your passwords with people. They simply don’t need to know.
- DO NOT use the same password for these online services that you use for financial and other sensitive online services.
- ONLY give the minimum amount of personal information required. Online services should always be on a “need to know” basis.
These may sound like basic rules, but many people forget when the convenience of not having to type their credit card is offered. Keeping these rules in mind for the PSN and any other online service will help to keep you safe.
