PSN Hacked!

Sony announced Apr 26 on their blog that the PlayStation Network was hacked and the intruders obtained personal information like email/mail addresses, passwords, date of birth, etc. Among the stolen info may be credit card numbers and expiration dates (excluding security codes). Info was stolen for about seventy million customers in PSN and Qriocity (Netflix is not mentioned by Sony, but I bet that log in information may have been taken as well).

Sony recommends to replace CC numbers, usernames and passwords for anything that may have been taken or that is similar in any other services. It is also recommended to keep an eye on bank accounts and credit reports: U.S. residents are entitled under U.S. law to one free credit report annually from each of the three major credit bureaus. To order your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com. Sony Submiteted names and other contact information to the major US credit bureaus free of charge. This will allow US residents to place a "fraud alert" for free to protect your identity.

See below for Contacting the US credit bureaus:
Experian: 888-397-3742; www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
Equifax: 800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
TransUnion: 800-680-7289; www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~KEEP READING FOR DETAILS AND OPINIONS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sony noticed an intrusion on their servers on April 19th and consequently shut down services. Supposedly they weren't certain if the customer database was at stake, but we all know that the intruders that take the risk to accessed such massive servers would have customer cc and identifiable info as part of the top files desired. A lot of people pointed fingers at the faceless hacker association 'Anonymous' for this incident, but Anons insist that they had nothing to do with it as a group despite their previous threats towards Sony. The identity theft, phishing, and scam cases that will emerge because of this incident are far scarier than anything else. I don't know about anyone else, but I did notice that since last week I started to receive a shit load of spam on my email trying to sell me new Bras and giving me jobs located on the other side of the country. I thought this was because I was putting my email on several website because of my trip to Europe, but not I am sure that its because of this breach.

Honestly, I think this is partially Anonymous' fault. Someone must have wanted to gain acceptance to the group by proving their abilities and/or was very pissed at Sony and desired to just make them look bad while obtaining some useful monetary recompense. I can't help but hear Xbox fans long/loud rants in my head about how Xbox Live is so much better; please hold your reins! Microsoft has released a warning about a series of Xbox Live scams that are circulating the network and are fooling people successfully quite frequently. Kotaku website even think that both of these incidents are related to each other, but there is little proof.

In the end I think this shows how much companies like Sony are truly falling behind on terms of security and there is nothing we can do about it. We can only abide by their rules and terms; there really is little choice if someone wishes to stay totally anonymous while being part of a community other than just not joining that community. I believe that most computer savvy people know that a breach this size is almost inevitable and will occur eventually despite new security measures. In my case I barely take any precautions concerning my identifiable information because I believe that if anyone wants to know something about you they will find it in the internet with little to no effort. I mean give me someone's facebook page link & 15 minutes --> I will tell you what websites they visit and where they have accounts, and I am not a hacker....

Are you afraid of identity theft? and what precautions do you take? or do you think that the less you try to protect yourself on the internet the less hackers will target you?

Thanks for reading!

References:
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/04/26/update-on-playstation-network-and-qriocity/
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/04/27/qa-1-for-playstation-network-and-qriocity-services/
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2384012,00.asp
http://www.anonnews.org/?p=press&a=item&i=848
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2384353,00.asp
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2384366,00.asp?kc=PCRSS03079TX1K0000585
http://www.cnet.com/8301-19709_1-20057984-10.html

2D glasses?

I stumbled upon this new product that seems to be smartly invented while targeting a small audience. I am talking about Hank's 2D Glasses. I personally hate 3D movies; they give me headaches, picture quality goes to shit when you are not looking at the sweet-spot (usually the center of attention in that scene), and just plain annoying to have 3D glasses on top of my prescription glasses (I don't wear contacts... my eyes despise them...), and 3D movie tickets are just more expensive.

The 2D Glasses cancel out the 3D effect by having the same polarization in each lens. Thus the same image is blocked for each eye creating the "normal" 2D effect that we all know. (PS: These only work for the big screen movies, 3D TV & 3DS technology are totally different; they have to do with real ultra-position and alternation of screens... or some crap like that... read about it and forgot :P ).
I am confident these glasses work perfectly; by using these glasses people who get headaches from watching 3D movies will be released from that suffering and picture quality will be the same across the screen (since there is no intervention from the other image). However, I still have to wear glasses on top of my prescription and I really do not see the point on paying extra for the 3D tech because of my companion wishes when I will not take advantage of it (Don't get me wrong... I do it from time to time).
Therefore, this product's target audience is limited due to the two disadvantages I mentioned and maybe even more that I have overlooked.

3D movies + 2D Glasses = -1 Comfort ( -3+2 ) & -2 Money ( -1[extra for service] -1[pay for 2D Glasses] ) = overall increase of +1 ~~ Not worth it for me.....  

{Do not understand the equation? well read article.... Do not understand it after reading article? well... I'd bet you didn't read close enough :D}

I am not judging the seller or customers; I am just trying to convey why mathematically I deem this product not worth my money. It is an improvement! It is not for me thought :)
Let me know if you would buy this and why.... I am interested to see what people think.... (maybe you will even change my mind)

For more information or purchasing take a look at the original website: http://www.2d-glasses.com
Purchase is also available via Amazon too: 2D Glasses

Gravity ruler trick! TRY IT!

Check this out and TRY IT....

All you need to make one of these is a ruler, a string, and a hammer with a rubber handle!
Please be careful with your feet and floors... the hammer will drop at least once when you try.

Have fun! cya later