After going through a hacking attack on their film studio's computer network last month, Sony has suffered yet another similar incident last Monday, this time against their online PlayStation store, according to a BBC News report.
Visitors to the PlayStation online store were greeted by an error message saying "Page Not Found - It's not you. It's the Internet's fault."
Sony has already responded to the attack, saying they are aware of the recent problems concerning their PlayStation network. "PSN update: we are aware of the issues some users are experiencing, and are working to address them. We'll keep you updated," said the company on Twitter.
Aside from issues with accessing the online store, gamers that use Sony's PlayStation network also reported connection problems as well, according to CNET. This latest attack on Sony comes less than a week after the tech company celebrated the 20th anniversary of its PlayStation gaming console.
The previous month saw Sony Pictures' computer network compromised, resulting in several upcoming films being leaked for downloading, as well as confidential information released to the public. It was suspected that North Korean hackers were involved, based on Korean language found in the malware code used in the hack.
However, the North Korean government denied any involvement with the digital attack on Sony.
"We do not know where in America the Sony Pictures is situated and for what wrongdoings it became the target of the attack," stated the National Defense Commission in a report from by the Korean Central News Agency.
A hacker group calling themselves the "Lizard Squad" has claimed responsibility for the attack, posting "PSN Login #offline #LizardSquad" on their Twitter page.
According to Marshall Honorof of Tom's Guide, the "Lizard Squad" is a group of "online troublemakers", and doubts that the group has indeed perpetrated the attacks it is claiming to have committed.
"For those not familiar with Lizard Squad, there's not much to know. The group prides itself on trolling anyone and everyone it feels might be worth a laugh," writes Honorof. "Unlike the hacker group Anonymous (which Lizard Squad despises), there's no veneer of social responsibility or vigilante justice; it's more into mayhem for mayhem's sake."
"As to whether or not Lizard Squad really brought down PSN, that's harder to say. Sony has not confirmed an attack of any kind, and Lizard Squad offered no proof of its exploits other than one brief tweet," he adds.
