What is it with hackers and Sony Corp.? It seems the company has a bull’s eye on its back, making its PlayStation Network an attractive target for attacks.  Three years after a major attack on its gaming network, Sony faces another assault by savvy hackers in a severe case of deja vu.

If you go to the PlayStation Network site today, you’ll be greeted with the following message: “Page Not Found! It’s not you. It’s the Internet’s fault.”

So who’s behind the attack this time? According to reports, a group called Lizard Squad has owned up to the attack. On Twitter, the group tweeted “PSN Login #offline #LizardSquad.” The hack is said to be a part of a grand plan to disrupt the gaming community throughout the Christmas season. The group has also claimed responsibility for taking down the Microsoft Xbox network site last week.

Lizard Squad did not give details on the attack, but it is suspected that the group performed a distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack which overloaded the system and stopped users from being able to log into the service.

The Lizard Squad promises to deliver an interesting month to the gaming community with its biggest surprise slated for December 25th.

No reason has been given as to why the group is targeting gaming networks.

Back in August, the Lizard Squad launched a DDoS attack on Twitch, PSN and Xbox Live.

Fresh off a Hollywood hack

About two weeks ago, Sony Pictures, the movie branch of the company, was hacked. The attack leaked personal information such as Social Security numbers, salaries, health records and official call lists of former and current employees, including actors contracted for movies or TV shows at Sony.

Sony representatives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and security expert FireEye Inc. are working together to figure out who sanctioned the attack. Initial investigations revealed the attack was similar to the methods used by hackers residing in North Korea. Kurt Baumgartner, a security researcher for Kaspersky Labs, also stated that the hack is similar to an attack against South Korean networks last year, though it has yet to be proven that the attack was sanctioned by the North Korean government.

You might be wondering what North Korea’s beef is with Sony. It’s likely the new Sony Pictures’ movie The Interview, which features actors Seth Rogen and James Franco. The film is a comedic take on North Korea’s current leader Kim Jong Un with an underlying plot to assassinate the so-called ‘Supreme Leader.’ North Koreans may see this movie as an act of war, making the hack a “righteous deed” that could have been performed by the country’s supporters and not sanctioned by the government.

Should Sony have known better?

In April 2011, the Sony PlayStation Network faced another major breach where attackers stole personal information and passwords of customers, including financial data. The extent of the attack was so massive and impacted so many users, you’d think Sony would’ve established tougher security measures in the last three years.

Identity Finder CEO Todd Feinman, stated that it seems companies today are more interested in keeping viruses out of their system than controlling the availability of sensitive information on their networks. He goes on to explain that Sony’s co-chairman Amy Pascal’s Social Security number can be found 104 separate times in unprotected documents, while Chief Executive Michael Lynton was found in 93 non-password protected documents.

“The No. 1 reason this happens is because companies have so much historical data and they don’t even know where it is,” Feinman said. “You’re just making hackers’ lives so much easier.”

photo credit: Voxphoto via photopin cc