Microsoft Finds “No Evidence” Of Xbox Live Breach

Following reports yesterday of possible security problems on Xbox Live, officials from Microsoft have said they have found no evidence of a security breach on the service or at Bungie.net – the website of the company’s first party Halo developer. Some users had complained that their online accounts were being “hijacked” and their credit cards used to purchase online Microsoft Points without their consent. However, Microsoft now say that this has merely been a few isolated incidents with some users attempting to retrieve personal information from others – how exactly this was being attempted though was not made clear. Spokesperson Larry 'Major Nelson' Hryb commented on his weblog: "Despite some recent reports and speculation, I want to reassure all of our 6 million Xbox Live members that we have looked into the situation and found no evidence of any compromise of the security of the Xbox Live Network or Bungie.net." He continued: "There have been a few isolated incidents where malicious users have been attempting to draw personal information from unsuspecting users and use it to gain access to their LIVE account. This is a good time to remind our members that they should never give out any of their personal information. Additionally it may be a good idea to download this free PDF file from Microsoft.com 'Help Protect Yourself Against Identity Theft’ that gives you some excellent information and tips on how to protect yourself." Despite the obvious target which Xbox Live and other game download services, there has thus far been no major scandals involving security for any of the three console manufacturers. The issues stands in contrast to the continual problems with online cheating and hacking with the multiplayer features of games, with companies such as Blizzard and Square Enix regularly banning thousands of users at a time.