170°

New concerns over Xbox 360 security as credit card details retrieved

"More concerns have arisen over the security of Xbox 360 after it emerged that restoring the console to factory settings won’t necessarily remove your personal information. A team of university researchers successfully retrieved credit card data from an Xbox that had been recently refurbished. What’s even more alarming is that it was done with basic modifying tools.

The findings could set alarm bells ringing for consumers who have sold their Xbox 360 thinking they had successfully wiped the console of any personal data. Head of the Drexel University research team, Ashley Podhradsky, said the only way of being truly sure that all personal data had been deleted was by using a third-party data erasing program such as Darik’s Boot & Nuke."

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pocket-lint.com
ziggurcat4445d ago

new concerns, yes, but no one is going to do anything about it because it's not sony.

jimbobwahey4445d ago

Typical Microsoft isn't it? Huge security flaws, so just make sure everyone keeps hush-hush about it at the customers expense.

kreate4444d ago

Why do ppl treat microsoft different from sony?

DigitalRaptor4444d ago (Edited 4444d ago )

I can't believe such a story hasn't blown up on N4G, let alone major news outlets. Sorry for calling conspiracy here (it's terrible, I know), but when Sony's network went down and no money was lost and no credit card information compromised and Sony actually gave their consumers compensation that they didn't need to do, they were still crucified by the media.

When things like this http://www.hackedonxbox.com... are happening where users actually had money stolen and some people still haven't got their money back after months, and this recent news surfaces, not a flutter of media backlash, or from the community and denial by Microsoft themselves. Something very worrying indeed.

hardcorehippiez (comment below) has it nailed.

Why are we not hearing more about this being publicized and made more public? Why is Sony always the one to get raped by the media and Microsoft issues get swept under the carpet? I fully expect to get sarcastic responses from MS fanboys, but this goes deeper than fanboy issues.

Tai_Kaliso4442d ago

There is nothing hush-hush about it, Microsoft has already came out and said its impossible for credit card info data to be stored on a HDD on the Xbox 360. Its a non story.

Sony fans are just dying for there to be a flaw in the security armor that is XBL, which is downright shameful really.

DigitalRaptor4445d ago (Edited 4445d ago )

Hmmm this is intriguing. More information that for some reason probably will never truly surface or be acknowledged.

Kind of like how this was ignored: http://www.hackedonxbox.com...

hardcorehippiez4444d ago

rest assured this will be swept under the carpet and forgot about , played down as its only a small minority and nothing will be done about it or much reporting. even though no actual credit card information was obtained in sony's breach because the whole network was pulled down to secure it it will be made a bigger deal of . if people cant see the media bias by now then they are burying their head in the sand and not choosing to see it because they themselves are bias and it doesnt involve their system of choice. its sickening the way the media acts this generation and in my opinion they are ruining gaming.

150°

10 Biggest Xbox Mistakes of All Time (So Far)

The Xbox brand has done a lot of good over the years, but their various blunders are pretty wild to look back on in their magnitude.

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culturedvultures.com
piroh8d ago (Edited 8d ago )

Ironically number 9 can save them at this point (releasing games on multiple platforms)

ChasterMies7d ago

By “save them” you mean make more profit for Microsoft. Xbox will still be a dying hardware platform.

OtterX7d ago

You could add the naming scheme for the consoles, it just confuses customers. I know they wanted to avoid traditional numbering bc it would always be lower than their competitor, but this whole 360 then One then Series thing is confusing af. Imagine a Soccer Mom trying to figure this stuff out. I still mistakenly call the Series X the One from time to time on accident.

RNTody7d ago

Don't forget about the Xbox One, Xbox One X and Xbox Series X! Good luck to Soccer moms around the world.

S2Killinit7d ago (Edited 7d ago )

They did that on purpose to confuse and direct attention away from the generational numbering.

MS doesn’t like reminding people that they joined the industry after others had already been involved in gaming.

For instance, they called the xbox “360” to combat PlayStation “3” because they wanted to seem like “more” than “3”, so instead of xbox 2, they opted for xbox 360. Also this had the additional benefit of selling consoles to uninformed parents who might purchase a “360” instead of a “3” by mistake, or because they thought 360 was more than 3. Kind of a disingenuous move.

They have been continuing with their confusing naming patterns for pretty much the same reasons. Frankly, it fits with who and what they are as a brand.

FinalFantasyFanatic6d ago

I can understand their reasoning, but whoever came up with that naming scheme should be fired, bad naming schemes have killed consoles (I'm pretty sure it was the major reason for the downfall of the WiiU). They should have had unqiue names like Nintendo and Sega have had for their consoles, far less confusing for the consumer.

rob-GP3d ago

@FinalFantasyFanatic "They should have had unqiue names like Nintendo..."

lol, you mean:

NES, SNES
GameBoy, GameBoy Advanced, GameBoy Colour, GameBoy SP
DS, DSi, DSXL
3DS, 3DS XL, New 3DS, New 3DS XL
Wii, Wii U
Switch, Switch OLED

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 3d ago
Cacabunga7d ago (Edited 7d ago )

Phil Spencer is the worst that has happened to Xbox.
They built a respectable brand up to Xbox one. Then this guy took over and things became a joke

Reaper22_7d ago

He still has his job. Something you can't say about Jim Ryan.

Cacabunga7d ago

Both bad execs. One is on job and one thankfully retired.

FinalFantasyFanatic6d ago (Edited 6d ago )

I didn't like either person, both people damaged their respective brands and produced worse outcomes, but Phil did save the Xbox brand from being retired by Microsoft. Although in hindsight, he should have just let it die, rather than languish in limbo like it is now.

Rainbowcookie6d ago

Yeah but the one that was "bad" didn't even affect sales.

bunt-custardly7d ago

Phil Spencer was also on the team back when 360 was around, alongside Shane Kim, Peter Moore etc. I think the damage that did the most harm was the Don Mattrick "Always Online" console (ahead of its time basically). They handed Sony and Nintendo a free-pass when that was revealed. It went downhill from there. Then the corporate machine went into full swing to try and recover. They have to a degree as a games company for the masses, and less so for the core gamer. Outside USA, the Xbox brand does not sell as well as Japanese based consoles (citation needed).

Cacabunga7d ago

Want a decision maker. The always online and TV plans was a disaster yes, but they caught up by announcing 1st party games that gamers actually kept the hype going.. until this moron took over and introduced the PC day one release.. e all know where that ended..

S2Killinit7d ago

I dont think they were ever a respectable brand, not since the beginning, when their goal was never to be involved and share in the gaming space. I think the OG xbox was an exception because MS as a brand was still getting its foot in and so the people behind that were people of the gaming industry.

FinalFantasyFanatic6d ago

The 360 was the brand in its prime though, everything went downhill towards the end of that generation. Its staple games like Halo, Forza and Gears are what kept the console relevant and afloat for so long.

MaximusPrime_7d ago

Really good video.

I remember the days with RRoD was big news on here, N4G.

Microsoft had it turbulence number of years.

Looking at the success of Sea of Thieves despite being 6 years old, time to release Halo, Forza horizon 4 & 5 on PS5. It'll help their revenue

shinoff21837d ago (Edited 7d ago )

2 of the 4 games they did already sold really well. So it's definitely going down. Idk about halo or forza but I feel those studios they've bought in the last 5 years, their coming

ChasterMies7d ago

I found this video painful to watch. Can someone list them out?

Top 10 for me from are:
1. 2013 reveal presentation
2. Bundling Kinect 2 with Xbox One
3. RRoD or why rushing to market with hardware is always a bad idea.
4. Buying studios only to close them.
5. Ads on the Home Screen
6. Letting Halo die.
7. Letting Geard of War die.
8. Every console name
9. Charging for Xbox Live on Xbox 360 when Sony let PS3 players play online for free.
10. Cancelling release of OG Xbox games after the Xbox 360 launched.

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150°

Microsoft to Add Copilot AI to Video Games

Microsoft recently revealed its plans to incorporate Copilot directly into video games, with Minecraft being the first showcased example.

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xpgained.co.uk
Fishy Fingers12d ago (Edited 12d ago )

F*** AI

"Hey Copilot, what's a good meme to prove I dislike AI".... https://giphy.com/clips/sou...

Einhander197212d ago

Two trillion dollar company that just can't wait to put as many people possible out of work as fast as possible.

It feels like every single thing they do is making gaming worse and destroying the industry.

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darthv7211d ago

....you know it takes people to program the AI.... right? It isnt like it is sentient. We haven't reach skynet level of situation or anywhere close to the matrix just yet.

That's next Thursday.

Einhander197211d ago (Edited 11d ago )

It takes a people to program the AI then that AI is used for who knows how many games eliminating countless jobs which only grows as AI is used for more and more game creation functions.

What you're saying is so ridiculously short sighted and truly larking any kind of understanding and foresight.

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CaptainFaisal11d ago

Why all the hate? Im actually excited about this! Always wanted this kind of immersion, and an AI companion with me all the time helping me out knowing the status of my skills/inventory/progress and giving me tips on the best approach or how to craft something specific is game changing for the industry.

Hate all you want about AI, but this is just the start and I can see the potential already. You wont be complaining in the next 5-10 years about this, but rather complain if a game hasn’t implemented it.

MrDead11d ago

Yes we can't wait for the work of others to be used without the need to pay them so that MS can profit even more from the people they fire.

I_am_Batman11d ago (Edited 11d ago )

There is no chance I'd ever use something like this, especially if it's not part of the core game design, but a layer on top of it. It's way too much handholding. Many games already feel like busy work, because they don't let the player figure things out on their own. Having a real-time interactive guide defeats the purpose of playing the game in the first place in my opinion.

If this were to become the standard like you predict, we'll see more and more video games get away with bad design, because people will just be used to ask for help from the AI companion anyway.

Number1TailzFan11d ago

Well Nintendo don't need this with some of their games these days, with invincible characters, items, easy bosses etc.. they do the hand holding built in

helicoptergirl11d ago

Takes "hand holding" in games to a whole new level.

BlackDoomAx10d ago

Because human nature xD Almost every new technology had these kind of comments.

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70°

Activision team is opening a new game studio in Poland 'Elsewhere Entertainment' to build new AAA IP

Microsoft's Activision subsidiary announced today that it is opening a new game development studio to take advantage of the huge talent pool growing in Poland. It'll be the second Activision studio based in the region, joining Infinity Ward Krakow, although this studio is, in fact, not working on Call of Duty.

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windowscentral.com
Psychonaut8515d ago

They’re not working on Call of Duty? Give it time.