News
Source: PlayStation Network Hacked Using Amazon's Cloud Service
A report this morning from Bloomberg News points to hackers using Amazon's Elastic Computer Cloud as a staging area for the attack on Sony's PlayStation Network -- which led the service to be shut down for almost a month.
The reporters who wrote the Bloomberg report cite an anonymous source "with knowledge of the matter" for the information. An Amazon spokesperson contacted by Bloomberg to confirm or deny the information declined to comment.
According to the source, the hackers used Amazon's Elastic Computer Cloud (EC2) to stage the attacks, but did "not hack into Amazon" -- meaning that they paid to rent the cloud service. (EC2's servers can be rented by the hour.)
The account, set up under a "bogus name," has since been disabled.
The Bloomberg article does not say whether or not the EC2 service was just one (or the only) of the staging areas used in the attack.
Sony has also not issued a statement about the report. Its PlayStation network, brought down last month, just came back up this past weekend.
About the Author
Becky Nagel serves as vice president of AI for 1105 Media specializing in developing media, events and training for companies around AI and generative AI technology. She also regularly writes and reports on AI news, and is the founding editor of PureAI.com. She's the author of "ChatGPT Prompt 101 Guide for Business Users" and other popular AI resources with a real-world business perspective. She regularly speaks, writes and develops content around AI, generative AI and other business tech. She has a background in Web technology and B2B enterprise technology journalism.