Sony update: Lawsuits, Congress absences, and free stuff

Today in the ongoing SOE/PSN data theft saga, a Sony spokesperson told reporters that the company will be cooperating with a Congress hearing regarding the security breach, but will not be testifying at the hearing as the case represents an ongoing criminal investigation. Meanwhile, a lawsuit seeks more than $1 billion in damages from Canadian users affected by the breach; and Sony offers players a free (digital) hat!

As we mentioned yesterday, Congress Representative Mary Bono Mack (R-CA, pictured right) has asked Sony to answer 13 questions aboutits handling of the attack. The New York Times has a copy of Mack's letter to Sony, and her questions pertain mainly to the timeline of the attacks and data theft, Sony's security measures and what actions it took to notify and protect its users. However, a spokesperson for Representative Mack told reporters that while the company will be cooperating with the request for answers, the ongoing investigation precludes anyone from the company appearing at tomorrow's hearing.

Meanwhile, the Canadian Press reports that Canadian PSN and Qriocity users are seeking more than $1B in damages from Sony as a result of the attack. Toronto lawyers McPhadden Samac Tuovi seek to have Sony pay for two years' credit monitoring, fraud insurance and damages for "fear, anxiety (and) emotional distress" to around 1 million users throughout Canada, represented in court by Ontario plaintiff Natasha Maksimovic.

Above: It was this or find the angriest-looking photo of The Biebs we could

A contrite Sony extended the first details of its offering to DC Universe Online players affected by the SOE outage. Players will receive one free month of subscription time, plus the days they lost in the outage, while SOE will use the time to move US and European players onto "Super-Servers" (cause, you know, comic books!) aimed at reducing queue times. A Batman-inspired cowl will also be available in-game to all users.

May 3, 2011

As we mentioned yesterday, Congress Representative Mary Bono Mack (R-CA, pictured right) has asked Sony to answer 13 questions aboutits handling of the attack. The New York Times has a copy of Mack's letter to Sony, and her questions pertain mainly to the timeline of the attacks and data theft, Sony's security measures and what actions it took to notify and protect its users. However, a spokesperson for Representative Mack told reporters that while the company will be cooperating with the request for answers, the ongoing investigation precludes anyone from the company appearing at tomorrow's hearing.

Meanwhile, the Canadian Press reports that Canadian PSN and Qriocity users are seeking more than $1B in damages from Sony as a result of the attack. Toronto lawyers McPhadden Samac Tuovi seek to have Sony pay for two years' credit monitoring, fraud insurance and damages for "fear, anxiety (and) emotional distress" to around 1 million users throughout Canada, represented in court by Ontario plaintiff Natasha Maksimovic.

Above: It was this or find the angriest-looking photo of The Biebs we could

A contrite Sony extended the first details of its offering to DC Universe Online players affected by the SOE outage. Players will receive one free month of subscription time, plus the days they lost in the outage, while SOE will use the time to move US and European players onto "Super-Servers" (cause, you know, comic books!) aimed at reducing queue times. A Batman-inspired cowl will also be available in-game to all users.

May 3, 2011