UK Chancellor Talks About PSN, Online Security Importance

The second most powerful man in British politics says that Sony's massive security breach should be a wake-up call for online services everywhere. Chancellor George Osborne told a London audience yesterday that all online services in the UK need to learn a lesson from the PlayStation Network troubles: security should be the top priority.

"The hacking into Sony’s online PlayStation Network, and the theft of millions of users’ credit card details, is a high profile example of the need for robust online security," Osborne said.

Osborne added that "this age of digitized public services creates challenges alongside opportunities – the challenge of ensuring the security of personal data and financial information."

Besides being a major embarrassment to Sony's corporate image, the PlayStation Network security breach has ruined the company's mostly positive relationship with customers and may open it up to a series of lawsuits in the future (one class action lawsuit has already been filed in Canada).

The PlayStation Network came back online over the weekend and Sony detailed plans to give customers free games and subscriptions to various services earlier this week.

The PlayStation Network came back online over the weekend and Sony detailed plans to give customers free games and subscriptions to various services earlier this week.

Source: Develop