Report: Sony could remotely disable jailbroken PS3s

by Andrew Yoon on Jan 11th 2011 3:30PM

With PS3 open territory for hackers and pirates, many have been wondering what action Sony will take to secure its system. The platform-destroying piracy rampant on PSP makes it clear exactly how much is at stake. To date, Sony's response to the jailbreak has been limited to mandatory firmware updates and revoking PSN access to those that refuse to use official system software.

However, a report by Digital Foundry claims that Sony can take far more drastic measures. Even if you've never signed up for a PSN account, your console will communicate with Sony servers every time it boots up. That initial load process is used to upload error logs, download updates to the "What's New" module, and a list of recently-run applications, including any unauthorized backup manager software.

Sony has yet to ban any consoles for taking advantage of the jailbreak, but the terms and conditions of the PlayStation Network make it clear that Sony has the authority to carry them out. Thanks to the system's constant self-reporting feature, "the company even has the means to irrevocably disable your console should it so wish," rendering affected PS3 consoles unusable, online and off. But will Sony ever use such a drastic measure? And if so, how will the hacker scene retaliate?

[Thanks, Vallanthaz]

Source: Eurogamer

Tags: hack, homebrew, jailbreak, piracy, playstation, ps3, sony

Reader Comments (197)

Nonsense. For one, if you never created an PSN account you've never actually agreed to the EULA. Second, disabling your hardware completely would likely land Sony on the wrong side of the law.

@Vidikron yet they also have the agreement in paper too... hmm

@Vidikron
and here I was wondering why anyone would connect to the internet with a pirated game. If I had one with pirated games I would just not go online.

@Vidikron
Of course they won't disable it, they are not stupid, but I'm sure they will start to ban jailbroken consoles.

@Teus

That literally means nothing if you weren't forced to read it before purchasing or opening. And, again, it's a PSN EULA. If you never signed up for the PSN there's no way it's binding.

@Vidikron

I see your point, but I'm sure there is some clever legal wording in the system manual that allows for such actions. If I'm not mistaken, I remember Microsoft doing something similar to gamers with modded consoles, and I've heard no word on any lawsuits against them for it.

On the surface, I don't see why it'd be against the law or anything. Whether Sony's EULA for the system would hold up in court or not is another matter altogether.

@Xeno378

AFAIK MS has never completely disabled the system. You've always still been able to play games.

@Vidikron Well if you aren't online then obviously you can't. If you have a PSN ID, they sure as hell can as your serial number for the console is linked to that ID.

I sure as hell hope this happens as I will laugh pretty hard.

@eNriqeu - I second this. They would never risk the lawsuit that would certainly come from disabling hardware that people had paid for. They absolutely will ban consoles from the PSN however, which is absolutely within their right (Microsoft does the same).

With custom firmware already out there for the PS3, and the security apparatus completely destroyed, I'm not sure that Sony could disable a PS3 remotely, even if they wanted to.

@kgoo867

There are also countless consumer protection laws. You may want to look those up.

@Vidikron Actually I think you agree to something the first time you turn it on and create that user account. I could be wrong about that, don't remember. You also probably enter an agreement the minute the purchase the thing.

Anyway, what Sony should do is develop its fix quickly and then disable every PS3 requiring an update the minute its booted up (if thats at all possible). This may sound drastic and stupid but I would prefer a very locked system to one where piracy begins to kill it but I guess those of you who would choose to pirate the software dont care about what impact it could have on the industry. I mean, I wouldn't develop anything for a system when I know its going to be pirated. I barely want to do it for Android (except that what I market is free).

@Vidikron

Not necessarily. There's something called a shrinkwrap contract, which could potentially be applied to the PS3. This is typically tied to software (but not always) and says that once you open the box and start using the product, you agree to the terms and conditions of the product. Just because you have never signed up for a PSN account does not mean that you did not agree to any terms and conditions merely by using the PS3. You must have an opportunity to read the terms and conditions before using the product, so they may be contained in the printed information that comes in the box.

@ncfootball

Just to clarify - You don't have to take any action to accept this type of contract. You just have to have the opportunity to read it before actually using the product. If you do not agree to it, you must also have the opportunity to return the product.

@ncfootball

I think I've actually heard that before. But my main point is they would never actually brick your console. It doesn't matter that their EULA says, there are consumer protection and contract laws that would prevent that sort of action.

@ncfootball - There isn't any precedent (that I can think of anyway..) for a company remotely disabling the functionality of a purchased device, simply because the company doesn't agree with how you are using it.

That Digital Foundry would even suggest that Sony has the capability (without a single source cited, or explanation of how they came to that conclusion) much less the incentive, is irresponsible. Sony is infinitely more likely to void your warranty, and ban you from the PSN, than to take on the liability of being the first company ever to remotely brick electronics devices (that are owned and not rented by the end user) for EULA violations.

@nesinvaders

But, who's to say that if your hacked PS3 "magically" got the YLOD one day after jailbreaking it, that it was Sony who did it? I'm sure Sony would just say it was the unsupported firmware that caused the malfunction...and voided your warranty to boot.

@Vidikron

I honestly don't know what they could and could not do.

The bigger question for me is, how would that affect them? Sure, it would severely damage their reputation with the joystiq population. But would the public care? Would more casual gamers even know that it can happen?

It's a touchy subject. I'm in the camp that installing your own CFW is okay. Running homebrew is okay. Downloading games for free over the internet? I couldn't care less if your console gets bricked.

@Troy Powers - I would love to read the corporate risk assessment document for "surreptitiously disabling consoles through firmware updates"

I think it would look something like this:

Risks:
Lawsuits
Jail
Customer Distrust

Rewards:
Get to say "HA HA!" to pirates in the voice of Nelson Muntz.

@Vidikron
By buying the system you've already basically agreed to use it as intended. But you know something, if you're not online and screwing with sony's servers I say who cares. You're not affecting trophy stats, you're not interfering with people who play games legally online and you can't impact PSN performance. So have fun playing your pirated games in a bubble without patches for games that are increasingly broken at launch. Oh and BTW you paid 350 - 400 bucks you now can't use to it's fullest!

@Vidikron

I dunno man...that's like saying "I didn't read the criminal codes for the state of California, which means the law doesn't apply to me when I kill somebody or steal a car, conveniently forget to pay my taxes, etc."

@Vidikron

I think they'd be well in their rights in stopping people from committing a crime (if they're pirating). I mean, if a guy uses a gun to hold up a store, should he not have the gun taken away from him?

@Vidikron
Isnt there an agreement when you first start the system up and set up the time and the user settings? I know there is definitely one when you update the system but I am pretty sure there is also one when the system is first booted.

@kgoo867 Except that jailbreaking has already been held up as A-Ok by the US and contracts are invalided when they contradict the law.

@Vidikron
would this accessing the Sony servers be the same issue that stopped the old PS3s working when a leap year error caused the internal clocks and network clock from syncing? Making onliners wait until the 2nd of March to use their PS3s online.

So they probably could very easily ban consoles, I suspect as every one of mine is linked to my account that the console would be barred from access to the PSN. Also that the PSN account would also be blocked. As PSN access has an user agreement.
They may even start court proceedings based on your personal details used during registration.

@Teus
i was thinking about this when i heard sony said they had a software fix for this. Just do what MS does. I'm sure that other than the MAC address, all ps3 systems have some type of unique identifier they use. All sony has to do is implement some type of changing startup thing that looks to see if the console is modded, if it is, bad that ID/MAC address.

@Vidikron
But it IS in the EULA for the mandatory firmware updates. I remember reading it when they took away the Other OS option. It says plain as day that they can remotely disable your PS3.

@Vidikron
You are aware in some countries you have to sign a contract before buying a console. Also when you start the console you agree to a EULA then too. You're given a 90 day period to return it for full price to Sony, or however long your store gives you too.

@Vidikron I don't understand why everyone's getting so hyped up about this. Just don't jailbreak your console and Sony has no reason to even consider disabling your console or banning you from PSN, legal or not. It's best just to not give them a reason.

@PN04

As I stated elsewhere in these comments I have zero interest in pirating games. I am interested in expanding the systems media capabilities however. I know everyone wants to assume we are all pirates, but those assumptions are wrong.

@kentuckyfried

It's not at all like that. This falls under contract laws and consumer protections.

@The Aquacharger

and EULAs are completely meaningless in some countries, what's your point?

Look, guys, all I' m saying is Sony won't brick everyones consoles whether you think they should or not. And it's doesn't matter that they wrote it in their EULA. It's not going to happen.

BTW, some of you are really need to think about your position. Ignore this whole issue for a second. Some of you seem to think it's OK if a company just destroys your device simply because they reserved that "right" in their EULA. That's an astoundingly stupid position to take.

@ncfootball

So from what you are describing, in terms of the "shrink wrap" law, could we not apply this to Gamestop? They take the shrink wrap out of brand new games and "re-sell" them as new. Would that circumvent the third party buyer from abiding the aforementioned "shrink wrap" law?

@ncfootball

still, EULA's are not law. consumer protection laws still apply.

@kgoo867 You are wrong. Courts have found EULAs non binding and voided them. Plus when you purchase a device, you own it. What you do afterwards is up to you, not the manufacturer. Their only recourse is to ban you from their networks or refuse warranty protection.

@Vidikron
Well if you are smart enough to figure out how to jailbreak a ps3 for pirated reasons, i figure you would be smart enough to purchase a second one for legit purposes only.

Bang for buck, in the long run it would be cheaper and wiser...
But what do i know
XD

@zigie

That's certainly what a lot of pirates will do... it's what they do with the 360 too. However, that's not really an option for me. As I've stated a couple of times in these comments, I'm not interested in piracy. I am, however, interested in seeing something like XBMC ported over to expand the system's media capabilities.

The advantage is I can use hardware I already own that is more than capable of doing what I want rather than putting putting another box (like and HTPC or Boxee Box) under my TV. Putting a second PS3 there accomplishes nothing as it is then just another box like the others.

@Vidikron

I love how every idiot on the internet thinks they're some sort fo Harvard Law professor. I agree, I would laugh my ass off if Sony did disable jaiilbroken PS3's.

The QQ's of the losers who did it would sustain me.

@Arcaria

It would be epic in terms of the outcry and certainly amusing to some. But it's never going to happen like that and IMO it's still an astoundingly stupid position to support. A precedent like that goes way beyond this one issue, but it seems many people here lack the ability to see the big picture.

@Vidikron

"
That literally means nothing if you weren't forced to read it before purchasing or opening"

Are you sure about that?

An awful lot of games require you to agree to the EULA just to run them.

I can't recall, but the PS3 might just have that on its first startup. Anyone remember? And if there's a seal on the box, it could cover this too.

At any rate, good luck recovering damages in court. Sony's worried about billions of dollars, so they should break your console if you play a pirated game.

@Dustin F

And as I said above, supporting such a move is utterly stupid. Again, try looking at the big picture for once instead getting stuck on, "OMG, PIRATES!". Why in the world would you support a company having the right to destroy a product you purchased because of some overly broad clause in a EULA? Can you really not see the ramifications of that?

@Vidikron

Dude whenever you buy something you agree to terms and conditions, but just like everybody else in the world you will never read them. And have you never studied the Computer Misuse Act? That clearly states that modifying, changing or tampering with software/hardware is a criminal offence. Also seeing as though it is actually Sony's property even though you have purchased it they can disable it if you do NOT obey the terms, and clearly jail-breaking your PS3 isn't obeying them.

I'd love to see it happen, but I doubt they'd have the spine. What about about people that never signed up for PSN, or were using the jailbreak (including the new CFW's) for legitimate purposes? They'd have quite a mess on their hands.

@xyloPhipps

legitimate purpose AKA playing pirates games off the hDD.

Oh wait, I mean "backed up games"

@Faenix Installing Linux to run a super computing cluster.

@xyloPhipps How would you use it legitimately ?

@hollenengel

I'm really just interested in a port of XBMC or something similar. It doesn't need to be anything as complicated as wanting to run a cluster of games consoles.

@xyloPhipps
To all the people saying that the only real usage is piracy: Wake up! Most PS3 games use a lot of storage. I wouldn't want to download entire blu-ray .ISOs. Let alone, build a collection on my HDD. PSP is easy, since I can just search for .iso/.cso on google and download it in mere minutes. PS3 games would take too much time for me to bother.
Best usage of the jailbreak would be running XMBC/Linux on it, ideal mediacenter: here I come!
Also, AsbestOS renders the security measure useless, since that runs BEFORE GameOS, and from that into GameOS.

@24hourpartypal

You realize you can rent/borrow games and rip them straight to your hard drive, right?

Also, a lot of PS3 games do not take up anywhere near the amount of a blu-ray. Then tend to fall into DVD size categories. averaging around 7-8GB.

@deathxrebirth
Renting is not available everywhere, in fact, over here in holland it's illegal. But yeah, I forgot about that.

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Report: Sony could remotely disable jailbroken PS3s

Reader Comments (197)

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:33PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:57PM Teus said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:59PM eat it said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:00PM eNriqeu said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:00PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:08PM Xeno378 said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:15PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:18PM sammo21 said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:20PM BananaBoat said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:24PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:27PM AGx07162 said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:28PM ncfootball said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:31PM ncfootball said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:35PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 5:14PM BananaBoat said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:50PM Troy Powers said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:52PM ncfootball said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:56PM BananaBoat said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 5:23PM PN04 said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 5:25PM kentuckyfried said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 5:45PM LockeDaemonfire said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 5:58PM friendlygummybear said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 6:03PM KAL326 said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 6:04PM coiled string said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 6:40PM simbadogg said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 6:51PM fohf said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 6:57PM The Aquacharger said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 7:20PM AnderFREAK said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 8:35PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 8:37PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 8:39PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 8:45PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 12th 2011 12:29AM momentai said

Posted: Jan 12th 2011 2:09AM maveric101 said

Posted: Jan 12th 2011 8:48AM Synner said

Posted: Jan 12th 2011 10:50AM zigie said

Posted: Jan 12th 2011 12:11PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 13th 2011 5:16PM Arcaria said

Posted: Jan 13th 2011 5:32PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 14th 2011 2:12PM Dustin F said

Posted: Jan 14th 2011 2:41PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 15th 2011 5:40PM manufc said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:35PM xyloPhipps said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:41PM Faenix said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:49PM hollenengel said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:50PM Leafhopper said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 3:52PM Vidikron said

Posted: Jan 11th 2011 4:02PM 24hourpartypal said

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Posted: Jan 11th 2011 6:33PM 24hourpartypal said

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