We really should have placed a bet on this one, it was that obvious. Sony has won the Pwnie Award 2011 for the ‘Most Epic FAIL’, for their well documented, much talked about Playstation Network (PSN) hack earlier this year.
Every year there is a Black Hat Security conference held where hackers, software developers and security experts gather. Every year they hand out an award called the “Pwnie Award”, given to a company or organisation who suffered the worst hack or security failing.
We’d imagine the decision this year was a straightforward and almost immediate one – Sony’s security failings earlier this year that led to the Playstation Network online gaming hub being taken offline for over a month, and thousands of users’ data stolen just had to take the title.
Strangely both Anonymous and LulzSec, the hacker groups behind leaked government data and several high profile website downings, both missed out on any awards at the event held in Las Vegas.
Some of the best known iPhone jailbreakers and hackers also attended the event, including Comex who recently created www.jailbreakme.com and GeoHot, the guy behind the first iPhone Jailbreaks and responsible (and sued for) the Playstation 3 Jailbreak. GeoHot, real name George Hotz, also picked up an award at the event. Not for his hacking abilities or Jailbreaking – strangely the award was for a song he made on YouTube.
For those interested, you can see the full list of Pwnie Awards on their site here.
We think Sony definitely deserved an award for their epic FAIL, but are the Pwnie Awards glamorising hacking? Let us know what you think!
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