14 DAY TRIAL // Sony announced today that it finalized the implementation of two-step verification (2SV) for the PlayStation Network (PSN).
Users that want to protect their PSN accounts with an extra layer of security can enable 2SV, often incorrectly referred to as two-factor authentication (2FA), by visiting playstation.com/en-us/account-security/2-step-verification/. 2SV is voluntary.
After users turn this setting on, they'll be required to enter a code they receive via SMS on their phone every time they want to log into their PSN accounts, regardless of device.
Most of today's big tech companies deploy 2SV, including Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo, LinkedIn and many more. Main rival Valve has implemented Steam Guard, a similar system, years before.
Hijacking gaming accounts has become a favorite sport for hackers, who trade them on underground hacking forums for small amounts of crypto-currency.
In 2011, Sony suffered a data breach of massive proportions that exposed personally identifiable information from all 77 million user accounts the PlayStation Network had at the time.
Following the incident, Sony brought down its network for a whopping 23 days and later received a fine from the UK government.
Sony blamed the incident on the Anonymous hacking collective, but several of the group's leading spokespersons denied any involvement. To this day, the identity of the real perpetrator remains a mystery.
2-step verification feature for PlayStation Network accounts launches tonight, offers additional security: https://t.co/uubOFHGnxn — PlayStation (@PlayStation) August 25, 2016