Not unexpectedly, Sony Corp. as recently as four days ago attempted to have the lawsuits tossed out of court.A common assertion amongst the plaintiffs is that Sony did little to prevent future attacks after a series of previous data hacks. It has been widely reported that the most recent hack originated in North Korea in response to the production and imminent release of the comedy that spoofs North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Plaintiffs in seven putative class actions point to prior data breaches suffered by Sony Network Entertainment International LLC and Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC that compromised the personal information of some 77 million PlayStation Network users in 2011. The plaintiffs in the six federal class actions and lone state class action assert that Sony dropped the ball following the 2011 data breaches and didn’t do enough to shore up any weaknesses that may have allowed the most recent data breach in the fall of 2014.
No matter. On February 9, Sony attempted to have the lawsuits thrown out in the face of allegations made by the majority of the various actions that Sony violated the California Customer Records Act. Sony’s position is that the Act does not apply given that plaintiffs are not customers, but rather employees of Sony.
“There are no allegations of identity theft, no allegations of fraudulent charges, and no allegations of misappropriation of medical information,” said the motion to dismiss the case brought by former employee Michael Corona. “Instead, the plaintiffs assert a broad range of common-law and statutory causes of action based on their alleged fear of an increased risk of future harm, as well as expenses they claim to have incurred to prevent that future harm. Those allegations, however, fail as a matter of law to establish the plaintiffs’ standing to sue.”
In response to an invasion of privacy allegation made by another former employee, Sony argued that the inadvertent loss of employee information falls short of standards set and observed by the court.
“The unintentional loss of data resulting from the theft by a third party, exposing the plaintiffs to, at most, an increased risk of identity theft does not constitute egregious conduct on SPE’s part so as to give rise to an actionable invasion of privacy,” Sony said.
With business, commerce, retail purchases and entertainment options increasingly embracing the Internet, consumers are expectant that corporations and other entities that conduct commerce online have bullet-proof safeguards in place to protect personal information and other sensitive data.
READ MORE DATA BREACH LEGAL NEWS
The cases are Michael Corona et al. v. Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., case number 2:14-cv-09600; Joshua Forster et al. vs. Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., case number 2:14-cv-09646; Michael Levine et al. v. Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., case number 2:14-cv-09687; Marcela Bailey et al. v. Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., case number 2:14-cv-09755; Steven Shapiro et al. v. Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., case number 2:14-cv-09762; Anastasio Garcia Rodriguez v. Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., case number 2:15-cv-00014; and Lawon Exum et al. v. Sony Pictures Entertainment, case number 2:15-cv-00011, in the US District Court for the Central District of California.
READER COMMENTS
Joseph Bester
on
I have contacted Sony PlayStation who state that there is nothing that they can do to retrieve my account. I called back two additional times and was advised to call back in a week because the account is in protective status. I called today (4th call) after it had been a week and was told to wait two more weeks, set up a 14 day trial with a new account, and at the end of the trial to call back to cancel the trial, and they would check into it again. I called again today (5th time) and asked for a supervisor. I was put on hold for a minute or so, then told that a supervisor was on the line. Then the call was dropped. The alleged supervisor sounded like the same person who put me on hold to get the supervisor, but it was the same person.
A hacker attempted to steal my online streaming account with Twitch. He/she stole my PSN (PlayStation Network) account. The email associated with my PSN account was stolen and used in spite of my two-step verification process. The hacker stripped my account with my information, replacing it with his/her information. PlayStation recognizes that I am the original account holder, yet claims there is nothing they can do to help me get my account back.
The hacker obtained the account illegally, changed the name on this account, set it up in a protective status, as e, as well using an email address I used to set up this account up over 15 years ago. This email was to provide recovery access should the login information be lost or stolen. Vital information on the stolen email and account has been compromised. Hence, also stealing my identity to do so, as well as the account holder of the email address email address and contents was compromised.
The content on my PSN Account included expert information relative to gaming and streaming of multiple games for what I have history, achieved by grinding (playing at the gaming very hard, persistently and continually) over a 30-day period to reach a 100% by May 31st, 2019. The benefit to the hacker in doing so, is that, without his own efforts, he can avoid intense years of my efforts he had not gained legally on his own to earn immortalized characters, use funds associated with my account, and high percentage gives him a jump ahead of other gamers to use against them with new releases: A product desired by many gamers. My account was stolen at 99% on May 30th, 2019 when my account was hacked.
The hacker also attempted to steal my income proceeds earned through my account with Twitch. Another issue of concern is that, the email on the PSN account was established as a child by a family member. This longstanding account was closed years ago; but was stolen and reopened through Sony PlayStation by the hacker changing to his information on this closed account.
I am seeking assistance with this Cyber Crime. Unfortunately, Sony PlayStation entity I have researched to discover, have complaints which alleges breach by Sony to protect the account of customers’ two-step verification process and privacy.