LulzSec hacks: Time to play the game

Outside of updating operating procedures, what can entertainment businesses take away from the Nintendo and Sony hacks? Only one thing get the right protection now.

According to a number of security professionals, Sony just didn't have the right protections in place.

"The most important two threats are data disclosure and downtime as a result of DDoS," Cosoi told IT PRO.

"For the first issue, they should make sure that any data that can leave their premises is encrypted and useless for the attacker. The incident that took place on Friday revealed that Sony had been storing passwords in plain text, which is absolutely unacceptable, especially when the user base exceeds one million entries."

To protect against DDoS attacks in particular, Cosoi recommended considering a re-design of server network architecture, complemented by DDoS protection technologies.

If you're a games company holding gamer data, invest in this kind of security now if you don't have it already. In fact, Cosoi's advice goes for every organisation holding valuable customer data as they are a target.

And if you don't think you're a target at all, you're wrong. Everyone is.

Tom Brewster

Tom Brewster is currently an associate editor at Forbes and an award-winning journalist who covers cyber security, surveillance, and privacy. Starting his career at ITPro as a staff writer and working up to a senior staff writer role, Tom has been covering the tech industry for more than ten years and is considered one of the leading journalists in his specialism.

He is a proud alum of the University of Sheffield where he secured an undergraduate degree in English Literature before undertaking a certification from General Assembly in web development.