Sony sent Geohot $1 to prove he was profiting from PS3 hacking?

Strange! According to third party reports, court filings reveal that Sony tried to send Geohot $1 to prove that the hacker was taking donations. However, Geohot himself never requested any donations.

[MarioWarfare]

LOL only 1 dollars

[SasanovaS1987]

are u guys that gullible? take a second and think. jesus, did u all fail 6th grade common sense classes? a multi billion dollar company doing such an act? u people are freakin...meh wont even bother with u

[jerethdagryphon]

they did its in there legal docs ive read it

even if hes not asking for donations hes left the hat out after the show he has a paypal setup to his email thats on his site

its implied that he accpts donations if sony can prove that sucessfully then weather he asks or not hes getting money from his work

[socomnick]

why wouldnt they multi billion dollar companies are are evil, and stop at nothing when it comes to gaining the almighty buck.

Better question is why wouldn't sony do this.

[JimRome]

Apparently you failed anything related to grammar classes.

[Led-Zeppelin]

-Bubble for immature. Good job.

[Eamon]

lol, I read this somewhere else. Pretty hilarious. Almost pitiful.

I believe they were trying to do this to link his twitter to paypal or something.

But if he never formally asked for donations then Sony is really taking the stereotype of the "evil multi billion dollar company."

How much money can Sony even obtain from Geohot? Even if he somehow gets a prison sentence. It won't scare off hackers. It will just make them stay anonymous. lol

Seriously, stick to console bans.

[young juice]

lol thats hilarious. ima laugh even harder if geohot loses over 1 buck.

i deleted my first edit cuz it was really lame

[sdtarm]

thats smart Lol...

[cemelc]

Didnt GeoHut had donations in its font page at one point??? Cos i think i saw it once.

Might be wrong tho.

[gaden_malak]

This reminds me of the lawyer who bought some very expensive cigars and insured them (against theft, damage including fires) and some insurance company actually insured them.
The lawyer then proceeded to smoke his cigars and claim the money from insurance. The insurance company paid out and then took him to court for fraud.

Very amusing story (whether it is true or not I don't know) but kinda similar.

edit: here is the story, it's fake but still amusing.
http://urbanlegends.about.c...

[HSx9]

let me just remind you guys, donating isn't illegal, anyone could have donated to his paypal for any other LEGAL reason. What if for some strange coincidence he found my dog so I donated $300 to him, would that mean I am supporting his hacks? no. If Geohot's lawyer can point something like this out, the donating made by sony is invalid to be used towards this case.

[Lich120]

Why would sony install rootkits on computers that play their CDs? That's extremely illegal. Maybe they failed their common sense class from 6th grade also?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

[cemelc]

@HSx9

Actully i think he had a donate banner right below the ps3 key at one point, almost sure of this. And that is illegal.

Even if he had a donate link during the hacking is still illegal cos that is money funding a hacker.

If sony send a dollar and that dollar arrived to geohot (witch probably did cos otherwise it wouldnt even be in the pappers), then he is going to have to awnser to that, and that is not a pretty picture for him.

Sony probably doesnt even want to win the case just exaust the resources of the kid, witch by any means is still bad for him.

[DragonKnight]

Ummm, they did it so they'd have a method and reason to pull his financial records. Simple as that really.

[DeadIIIRed]

lol @hsx9, doesn't work like that. Can a minor "donate" $6 to you for a pack of cigarettes? Or in a dry county can a person "donate" $25 to a clerk for free beer?

[gcolley]

Known fact - Sony are world class at 2 things... marketing and suing smaller entities right up to the end and then dropping the case. all 3 console manufacturers are bullies, this is how they get so big.

[MintBerryCrunch]

sort of like corporate entrapment if you ask me....giving a guy something he doesnt want and then use that against him to prove their case

[blahblah]

lol, you mean like being cheap, untrustworthy and really without any moral?

like this?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

read how sony did to LAME exactly the same thing they accuse these people. not respecting agreement.

trouble is that LAME is not profit software, the only tax is if you use software you keep it free. kinda like stealing from beggars hat.

off course, LAME has copyright done correctly as it is exposed on to you before you even download software. while sony way is illegal is most countries.

terms of service are not presented before you buy product and for example if you open package you also bought it. good luck with not agreeing to terms

@cemelc

http://fail0verflow.com/
read bottom of the page, it was like that even before they uncovered ps3 hack

[shovelface88]

Sasanova, if you are going to insult anyone's intelligence, learn to type with understandable English grammar.

[ComboBreaker]

Geo: "I am not."

Sony: "Then what's your donation button doing on your hacking website? We can even prove that clicking on your donate button will donate $1 into your account."

Geo: "I didn't ask for donation. I just happen to have a donate button on my website so people can donate to me. However, I never asked for donation."

N4G: "Geo's right. For example, a black guy can just come into my house in the middle of the night and point a gun at my head, and it's totally legal, as long as he doesn't say he's going to kill me. 'Cause you know, he never said he was going to kill me. He only pointed tthe gun at my head, then pointed at my cash. It was totally my my choice to give him the money. He didn't say he was going to kill me if I don't give him the cash. He merely pointed a gun at my head. So it's totally okay and he should not get arrest and charge for it."

Count: "Why do people on N4G thinks we give a shit about about what they say? Geo is going away for a very long time, and no amount of PS3 hate going on on N4G is going to influence the court's decision."

[PlayerX]

Lol Only N4G would justify this

[raptorjacob]

@ mintberrycrunch
if geohot didn't want the money why did he have a donate link

[Theonik]

Even so they can't prove he actually was accepting donations for the PS3 hack which he was not. His iPhone hacking was declared legal in court. Sony is grasping at straws here as is the rest of their claims.

[RedDragan]

@1.1.1

"they did its in there legal docs ive read it"

How did you get to see the legal documents?

[TEFL0N_D0N_81]

@ComboBreaker

I reported you for racism you schmuck.

[Ryudo]

Sony is making the classic mistake of thinking you can somehow scare or bully hackers.

Problem is the only thing Sony will achieve by this is managing to piss them of.

[DualConsoleOwner]

This is what Geo's lawyers are claiming.

they absolutely have zero proof that Sony actually sent that dollar.

[FailOverHero]

PirateThom, are you reading this? Told you he didn't accept any donations for this hack

[Christopher]

Doesn't mean he doesn't take donations for hacking other devices. I mean, if he's getting donations for 'hacking', it's easy for him to say "But none of the money I was donated in the time that I was hacking the PS3 was for that."

That's like Sony saying that none of the profits for the PS3 are going towards making the PS4. Doesn't really matter, money they are earning is being used to develop the PS4. Unless GeoHot suddenly stopped eating, drinking, and didn't pay whatever bills he has during the time he spent hacking the PS3, the donations he received and used to pay such things as well as equipment went towards hacking the PS3.

[visualb]

thats all they needed

they probably just did this to prove in court it was possible, making for a stronger case

[PS3n360]

crap thats the entire 2011 marketing budget for sony.

[nix]

lol... i love Sony but this made me laugh! q;

[the_best_player]

haha same

[deadoralive1337]

OMG, goddamn this hacking shit. I am just gonna go and chill with my ps3. I have to get ready for some lbp2 action next tuesday. :D

[CarlosX360]

I love when Sony insults its enemies. ;)

[morkendo23]

Sony tried to send Geohot $1 to prove that the hacker was taking donations. However, Geohot himself never requested any donations.

DANG, IF YOUR GOING TO BRIB ME... DO BETTER THAN A DOLLAR ...for crying out loud. if i was Geohot i would disclaim any donations too.... a dollar??? haaaaa.

[SoSLy]

the fact that Sony was able to send him a dollar for his "hacks" means that he is "profiting" from the hacks.

[TVippy]

Cheap Sony is gonna try all the dirty tricks it can now.

[Christopher]

[Why do I try?]

[Christopher]

I'm honestly surprised at the idiocy displayed in the comments here.

Do people not understand that in order to validate the presence of a PayPal account that GeoHot used to receive donations for his hacking activities, Sony has to have proof that it exists on their end in order to subpoena the records of said account?

It was not to prove he received donations for this project, it was to prove he receives donations for hacking in general. And, it's up to the court to prove if GeoHot's donations during the period that he was hacking the PS3 could have been used to fund the hack.

Sure, GeoHot never asked for donations for the PS3, but he did ask for donations in his hacking activities, which included hacking the PS3.

Honestly, idiocy has run rampant here since this the TRO was made public.

[FinalSpartan]

cheap move sony cheap move...making you look foolish now and the fanboys.

[BlackTar187]

lol you dont even know what your talking about read above you at least if you dont know what is going on keep it to yourself

[Blacktric]

I'd sent three fitty instead of one dollar.

[firefoxprime]

Ah crap...Bad move Sony!
Of course only $1.

[deadreckoning666]

If thats true...I just lost a lot of respect for Sony. If Geohot is guilty, then prove it in COURT. This $1 crap is clearly a desperation move. If I were the head of Sony games division...I'd sue Geohot as well, but I wouldn't use a b.s. tactic like that.

@socomnick- Sony wants to prove that Geohot takes donations. Which would mean that he makes a profit from hacking. If Sony can prove that Geohot profits from hacking...then the case is a slam dunk for Sony.

The thing is, Geohot doesn't ask for donations. So if this DID happen, Sony just made themselves look very stupid. Btw, the article said that Sony TRIED to do this. So, Geohot wasn't dumb enough to fall into Sony's trap.

[Simon_Brezhnev]

why are you so obsessed with anything negative towards Sony? You are worst than PS3 fanboys.

[Adva]

Oh look, fanboy in disguise

[firefoxprime]

You know what DeadReck?

Not only do I find your post "completely" unnecessary, but I'm also a christian. Mark of the best is not cool man.

I remember when you 3 bubbles. That was just 2 months ago. *crickets*

[badz149]

"If thats true...I just lost a lot of respect for Sony" - LOL you never had any to begin with! stop acting all saint over there Mr. Sony Hater!

[blahblah]

@Simon_Brezhnev

lol, why are you so blindsided?

hey, i love my ps3, not to mention i love my games even more. but, please... do not call sony righteous company who really care about you. they are in it for the money

[Anon1974]

Why is this a bad move on Sony's part? I don't get it?

The guy hacks, then releases stolen codes online knowing that this will spur on pirates and other hackers. That's all he does on his site - hacks, teachers others to hack and brag about his hacking. Then he has a donation button linked to his paypal so he can take in money.

If a guy is sitting on the street corner, playing a saxophone, and he's got a hat in front of him - it's pretty obvious that people are paying him for playing his sax. He's profiting from playing a sax. If someone does the same thing but just sitting there - he's begging. Money given to him is his profit for begging.

George Hotz hacking on his site and then putting his hat out is him profiting from his hacks. In this case, profiting from stealing confidential codes and passwords and making them public. If he hacked your computer, stole your personal information and passwords and then posted them on your site and took money for it, most of us would take issue with that and rightfully call the police. This is no different. The guy already tried to compromise the PS3 once - he was never going to stop and in the meantime he was profiting from it and enjoying his celebrity.

It's about time someone put the breaks on this kid. I'd love it if, like in other hacking cases, not only does he get jail time but he's prohibited from using computers in the future. I've seen the courts do this before and I'd love to see him computer-less, serving me burgers somewhere.

"Hey, Geohotz. Fries are done!"

[milohighclub]

hahahaha

"Hey, Geohotz. Fries are done!"

hahahhaha

best thing i've read on N4G! Ever!!!.

Bubs up...

[Threesix]

You're assuming way too much contrary to what's actually happening. What he released is made for homebrew and even he says he didn't enable the capability for you to pirate games with it because that's something he doesn't support.

And he specifically never asked for donations because of this code being released. He's had a donation option open before that point already.

This is a bad move for Sony because #1 he apparently didn't accept the money, and #2 it looks like a desperation maneuver. If they were confident that they could beat him in court, then why resort to this tactic? It looks like Sony is looking for anything they can get on the guy to use, which is understandable, but you'd think there would be better ways to do it.

And if Sony wins, Mr. Hotz will still be gainfully employed. You think the government or any number of big companies would let his skills go to waste? Oh no, you won't be seeing him working in fast food any time soon.

[Ju]

There is something called "reckless driving". Even if you have no intention to kill someone but you do, you will still be held accountable to that.

GeoHot can pretend whatever he wants. Assuming his exploit would not lead to piracy is at least "reckless" and irresponsible. He, especially with his intellect, should have know about the consequences of his doing.

[Stryfeno2]

That dollar should of went to PS Move marketing. It would of been a better choice.

[awesomeperson]

I like it better when you don't comment on this site.

[Prototype]

I Gave you a bubble awesome, that made my day :D

[Rage_S90]

you live up to your name awesome person

[no_more_trolling]

lol
funny stuff lololol

[BISHOP-BRASIL]

Looks like Omega is back... Not that you have anything to play as a reason to left.

[testerg35]

LOL.. desperate move.

[SuperLupe]

Thats just...pathetic from Sony. Why are they so desperate. I dont see MS or Ninty going all berserk over piracy.

Makes me almost feel sorry for them.

@below: I understand but please...PS2 piracy was rampant and almost didnt hurt Sony at all. What makes them think this time around it will kill them. Look at the 360 software sales...its almost hard to believe that console is pirated as hell.
Sony should just calm down..

[mt]

you know if i own sony company or microsoft or whatever company and i see someone go and says i hacked your system or whatever device we make. i would be really pissed and ill try to stop that person.

[gaden_malak]

Oh you mean Microsoft ban hammering 1 million hacked XBOX 360s or Nintendo successfully suing a man who released Super Mario Bros Wii out on the internet?

Yeah, they don't go nuts over it.

[DeadIIIRed]

Lets say you own some shares of Sony (SNE). You hear that a major blow has hit the company in this hack or whatever you want to call it. Sony's response is either, Sue people responsible to calm investors while working on fix or leave people responsible alone while investors dump stock and leave Sony with less working capital. Win or not it buys them time with investors.

[HolyOrangeCows]

"desperate move"?
"Pathetic?"

So it's a "pathetic" and "desperate" move if they use this evidence to prove that GeoNotz is open to donations for his current/recent works? That's neither "Desperate" nor "pathetic"....theyre simply demonstrating what they're trying to prove in court. I know you're rooting for the hackers to win against Sony in Court, but Sony is trying to win this case, not please their haters like you guys.

[Silly gameAr]

Oh I'm sure MS and Nintendo do whatever they can to stop piracy on their consoles, it's just not front page news for people to act high and mighty in the comment section.

[Lord_Doggington]

Sorry, but this sounds fishy as hell. It's clear that Sony needs all the help they can get w/ this case. It's underhanded to even attempt to do something like this. Geohot and his people in general know better than to take donations. And if he did take donations (highly unlikely), he deserves to go down for profiting off of it.

If he didn't take any money, than I think it works against Sony and shows how manipulative they can be...

The legal term is entrapment, no?

[jerethdagryphon]

unless he or paypal provide transaction record for his accounts that show he refunded any donations made volentarly

well. its not entrapment, its simply makeing a peice of evidence trackable from there end

[Lord_Doggington]

actually, it's only illegal if he solicited the donation, so I take it back. he can take donations from whomever he wants as long as he doesn't ask for them.

Sony just made a dumb dumb move. Like literally dumb.

[the_1080p_guy]

I remember that when GeoHot was mouthing off about how the ps3 can be hacked by OtherOS and made a custom theme,he had a donate link on his blog,i dont have any link right now though,sorry.It was few weeks before OtherOS got removed.

He also took money from iPhone scene,but Apple aint doing anything about it,so...

Most importantly,do u know why i hate this guy?His first homebrew says 'sup,dawg its geohotz' blah blah

coding 'Hello World' has been a legacy to hackers when they can enter a new system,but here our attention whore ala 'hiphopgamer' wanna-be says sup dawg ?!,wtf does he think he is?

[Loner]

Pathetic and desperate move from Sony

[visualb]

ehm....

a) sony didn't think this up, their attorney(s) did
b) its legal
c) its to prove a point to court
d) you know whats pathetic? enabling the possibility of hard dev work being pirated and enabling the possibility to ruin the online experience for other PAYING customers.

THATS pathetic.

[Lord_Doggington]

do you even realize that the CFW isn't meant to pirate games. Even w/ the actual code you can't literally pirate games. AND you can't modify the code to allow for pirated games

You'd need a whole new code.

Of course you didn't know that...whelp

[Rage_S90]

and yet castlevania was pirated interesting....

[jerethdagryphon]

yes you can it jsut takes more work

it doesnt have the poke and peek calls ok fine

dig out the old silver plate exploint and work them into his new one

then rework sign install hey look cfw that pirates

[jack who]

if true sony just lost their case

[Loner]

Yep pretty much
Well this is what his lawyers are saying so they must have a record of the transaction.
Only the most dedicated fanboy would be able to defend something like this
Its a pathetic move from Sony

[PirateThom]

Do you even realise why they did it?

It wasn't to say "lolz he made $1", it's to show the money was going to him via his site.

If anything, his lawyers confirming it just proves what Sony were trying to prove.

[jack who]

its a donation for one and his site is also base on other things besides ps3 hacks.

so that "it's to show the money was going to him via his site" wont work

[Lord_Doggington]

also geohot had to have solicited the donation, via a link or whatever. Since there was no solicitation, geohot didn't break the law.

I guess Sony didn't get the memo about that lil piece of law lol

[Eamon]

lol no PirateThom. That's called conspiracy to forge evidence.

Geohot never formally asked for donations on his work. Sony would benefit in court if he did. So they tried this tactic to link the case.

I think Sony wouldn't want people to know about this. Too late now.

[LaChance]

Pirate Thom. Just imagine MS did something like this...?

This site would crash. Dont try to twist/defend this. Its pitiful.

[gaden_malak]

I like how we have so many lawyers on this site. How you guys find time to post here when you should be in court is amazing. /s

[sobekflakmonkey]

@gaden-malak lol i was just thinking the same thing...I personally dont think a single person here knows what they are talking about..

[RememberThe357]

How is that? Sony lost it's case because they tried to tie Geohot to his paypal account? Am i missing something or did you just make a huge mental leap?

[Muitnorts]

Yeah, maybe we should all accept that Sony's lawyers know more about this stuff than the n4g commenters.

[BYE]

You guys don't know what you're talking about. "Lost their case"? Based on what?

[UP]

OBJECTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

see i can be a lawyers too.

sorry I had to do it.

Also most the people posting law comments are as much as a lawyer as this guy http://upload.wikimedia.org...

[DlocDaBudSmoka]

objection over ruled, see i can be a hudge.

[UP]

I filibuster that overruling.

[AccountClosed57029]

Hey baby, my name is Dr. V, I'm a lawyer, engineer, computer tech, and a Sony investor. Your place or mine?

[wwm0nkey]

Wow I looked this up more and sure enough they actually fucking did this...really...like no REALLY?

[Lord_Doggington]

haha Sony screwed themselves with a single dollar. I don't use this term very often, but that is an EPIC FAIL

[AKissFromDaddy]

With a supporting quote from Jonathan Blow, the creator of Braid. He says, "“I don’t like software piracy, and I do wish many fewer people would pirate games, and I would certainly like to sell more copies of my games if possible,” he told us.

“But if we start talking about a future in which all common computing devices are locked down – which is what we seem to be looking at, as the market shifts away from PCs toward tablets, and so on – then that is a worrisome future that may well be worse than rampant piracy.

However, this may be the most important quote!

“If there’s one thing I have learned on the business side as a developer, it’s that Sony, Microsoft, Apple, etc, are not my friends; they are especially [Emphasis Blow's own - Ed] not the friends of their customers.

“As a resident of the USA, I find the country to be alarmingly fascist in 2011, compared to the USA I was born in. I am not eager to push things further in that direction, even if it costs myself and other software developers money.”

Source - http://www.vg247.com/2011/0...

Sony trying to setup up Geohot, smh!

[jjank11]

Could not agree more with what Jonathan Blow had to say. Freedoms are eroding in this country called the USA at an alarming pace. Its pretty damn close to becoming a fascist state.

Braid was an amazing game and seeing as how the developer shares some like opinions, I have decided to support him even more!!

[gcolley]

this is the sad thing about fanboys, they actually stick up for these companies because of some pointless fear of owning a console that is not cool or something idiotic like that. these companies have never laughed at their customers so hard. they now have whole armies of defenders no matter how much they screw their customers over.

[blahblah]

ok, for that comment he just sold one copy more. i don't even care if i like the game or not. don't even care if it exists for my platform. first thing today when i'm free is buying Braid.

exactly my sentiments and i'm a developer too, except i don't work on games

[blahblah]

lol at disagree (don't even care how many i get, but i have to wonder how brainless this person was, i didn't even state anything public, lol)

i wonder if he disagreed i'll buy braid or with the fact that i as developer have same sentiments.

guess sometimes people on n4g know more about you than your self;)

[bailoutbenny]

Bubs up, Blow gets it. Most developers get it, I think. I'm a developer and piracy really isn't a huge concern for me either. I see an increasingly less free future, not only in terms of computing but in general, as an overriding concern. The U.S. has been fascist for a long time, but it is good to see more and more people waking up to the facts. Most large corporations are openly hostile to their customers, but, as we can see from all the fanboys on N4G, good marketing and a few neat features is enough to make anyone trust you. Beware the iron fist beneath the velvet glove people. Do not forget that corporations and government are ALWAYS subject to the will of the people and not the other way around. Too many people forget their power and are duped into thinking they have none when in reality they have it all. Government cannot rule without the consent of the people, explicit or implied. Those that do nothing give the government implied consent. Those that give it explicitly may be fools, but they at least exercise their power. Corporations are even more subject to the will of the people. You either buy or don't buy their products. Buying their products and then complaining does not send a message if you keep on buying! You need to stop buying that which you don't agree with! Make sure the government doesn't bail out the company about to fail, either. Failure must not be rewarded at the taxpayer's expense.

[Tainted Gene]

well said, bubbles

[Motorola]

Thats just hilarious sorry. Im a PS3 fan and thats funny as hell, nice job Sony/s

[MGRogue2017]

I think Sony should just hire the Frodo look-alike.. They can use that bitch to their advantage, strengthen the security & whatnot on their PS3 as well as on future consoles

[moodymofo]

that sound ok as an idea but realisticly it would be like the national defense hiring a soviet spy ,he could not be trusted

[badz149]

what he does best is hacking the security. if you ask him to make one, I doubt it that he can!

[blahblah]

lol, you really are clueless, arent't you?

first thing to hack on security is knowing how to hack your way inside. you wouldn't be worth one penny if you don't know how to do that.

most hackers that are bought from their ways are *damn* heavily paid to work on security. who is better to test your alarm than best thief? who is better to test your computer security than hacker?

[badz149]

you don't have to know how to make a PS3 to hack a PS3! much like you don't have to know how to make Windows to hack 1! so, what is so great about this guy? he didn't make anything! he just breaks them! employed hackers also paid to hack, not to create! you're the one who's clueless here!

[GarandShooter]

@ badz

I think if someone employs a hacker for this reason, they hire him to hack, to find the holes and allow others to fix them.

[StarScream4Ever]

This case is turning to a twisted battle. What's next? Wrighto will lead the defense and Edgey will prosecute?

[awesomeperson]

Kevin Butler will provide evidence in court.

[Too_many_games]

i'll take 1 dollar(s) from Sony

[Rhythmattic]

"i'd Buy that for a Dollar"

[blackburn5]

Is this even true? @ Cyrus365. Yes your right. Sony should let every hacker that tries to hack and break into their system blackmail them into giving them a job. They should just roll over whenever a threat comes up in case they might mad if they try to stop or repel them.

[Cyrus365]

Sony is dumb, they should hire this kid, to help fix their holes...or exploits, like what government generally done when hackers exploit their system, they huff and puff and put a criminal case on these hackers, and by the end of it, the "Criminal" is working for them.

If I was Sony or Microsoft, i'd offer him a job, i mean dude has jail broken a iPhone, PS3, Android, pretty much everything...Hire him, he's know his stuff.

[Megaton]

Yep. Wasting time, money, and looking like clueless oafs by gunning after this guy when they should just give him a job.

Microsoft should hire him for the trolololz.

[NeoBasch]

Wasn't the key stolen? I don't call that hacking.

[aGameDeveloper]

One difference here is that the US government might execute the criminals for treason if they continue in their activities. If Sony hires these guys, they are simply exposing themselves further to someone with a demonstrated history of causing trouble.

If I killed your mother and sister by circumventing whatever defenses they had about them, would you turn around and hire me to be your wife's bodyguard, thereby giving free access through her defenses?

[Bolts]

Where do you think experts in the electronic security fields come from? Choir boys and people with a profound respect for copyright laws? Top grads from the anti-hacking schools? Lol

[RememberThe357]

I never knew N4G was filled with such brilliant legal minds. /s

How about we let the actual courts and actual lawyers work this out.

Why would a judge through the case out because of this in the face of such strong evidence? Odds are that this won't have any effect on the case. At all.

[GSpartan777]

One day we are all arguing about which console is better and the next thing you know, everyone is a pro-hacker and a lawyer ;)

[nix]

lol.. true.

[Omegasyde]

its to bring in further evidence.

[Bolts]

Where did this rational thought come from. This is N4G, that stuff doesn't belong here.

[joeorc]

In criminal law, entrapment is constituted by a law enforcement agent inducing a person to commit an offense that the person would otherwise have been unlikely to commit.

"law enforcement agent"

notice this Sony is not Law enforcement! thus it's not entrapment, and if that payment goes through ..lol

yes it could mean he could accept any donations for anything, but yet....lol

if he takes donations for anything, an this info about the PS3 hack was on his site an a donation goes through, that could mean it could be seen he takes donations for Hacking which is fine. but quite does not help you if what you are doing in a hack is illegal. this was to in likely to "establish cause for"

who sent the $1.00 it could have been sent by Sony in front of a judge which would be quite bad for George!

[visualb]

damn im going to set up my own paypal account

donations welcome =D

[DarkFantasy]

lol,this may seem stupid to some of the people on this site but it's actually really smart. if he accepted the money hes f'ed if he is taking donations hes f'ed he can't hide it if he did.even the smartest people can be stupid.

[gcolley]

until the media gets hold of it and it is then a dirty trick. but then again these are lawyers we are talking about. people seem to forget how much better this world would be without scumbag lawyers and the current BS legal system.

[DarkFantasy]

i think people should just stop breaking the law really then we wouldn't really need them http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[Blaine]

Looks like a real legit source for information... O_o

[OGharryjoysticks]

Funny how there's so many defenders in every article for the hackers. I like your approach as well, you can buy a car and rip it apart and modify it howeveryou want...I agree with you. But when you modify it so it's not street legal it's illegal. Now let's not be buttfucks and try to claim we modified it without trying to have it run the best it can. Sure I believe you only want to run SNES games LOL. Let's gut the Ferrari and put in a Yugo engine LOL.

[jsventor]

I would agree to this a million times if I could.

[jsventor]

So because Sony did this it makes them a horrible company? I'm sick and tired of people saying that. This is serious. Do you have any idea how much of a dent this could put into Sony's funding? When a company becomes a multi-billion dollar company they usually tend to do their best to stay there, this is them doing that. Hell I can't even finish a good anime because some of them get discontinued due to the lack of honest and loyal fans. Screw piracy to hell.

[NeoBasch]

Exactly. The anime industry has gone downhill dramatically. Even when they try to adjust with the times by using YouTube and ads, it's still not good enough. Profits are still down. It's nothing like how it used to be. There isn't much worse than piracy for these companies quite honestly, and the only reason why it's rampant is that man is naturally greedy.

People act like Sony and Funimation are the dirty business men of Wall Street or something. They're not. Their human just like us. They have names, families, kids... It's not always about profit. The whole industry's in jeopardy. Developers might become restricted; less open to launching new IPs.

Just look at TV. Networks are struggling to stay afloat because of Nielsen. The world of advertising is what keeps our country afloat. If we can't find them clients, entire industries will begin to fade away. Try to tell me then Sony was in the wrong for pursuing this case.

[jerethdagryphon]

well lets see
cell development 1.2 billion
manufactiong fabs 600million
licenes based off of security about 500 million

infastructure 150million

thats about the dev cost for the ps3 most of its value hinges on security those keeys are worth about 100 million to sony not in cash but in interests

[espiritu604]

MY PANTS MAKE GURGLING NOISES AT NIGHT, PLEASE HELP ME.

[GoldPS3]

Of course he's getting paid. With skills to hack you be stupid not to be.

[UP]

seriously guys everyone needs to STFU about law talk no one know what the hell anyone is talking about. Some of you sound just like charlie Kelly when he went lawyer mode. I am pretty sure I read made up charges and other shit. Let the real lawyers do their job. Also do not count Sony out anything can happen.

[Hozi89]

Who are these Third Parties? I need a source to go with. Otherwise I can't believe this.

EDIT: I just did my own research. Everything about case and even the PS3 Key code or whatever can be found here. I recommend all you wannabe lawyers to take a good read at all the documents for George Hotz vs. SCEA before posting ignorant comments.

http://psx-scene.com/forums...

[denero1]

its in the legal documents >.<

[itsralf]

There's an app on the Android marketplace to jailbreak your PS3. Comes with the cfw and some homebrew stuff. Costs $5.99.

I'm pretty sure the developer of that app is the only person profiting from the jb. Gehot has been refusing donations since day one.

[Merivigian]

Reminds me of something that happened to Labron James, someone gave him a jersey as a gift and he's not allowed to accept gifts, he got suspended. (saw it on a documentary)

[ATi_Elite]

Yep that's very true.
While Lebron was in high school some sports store gave him two throw back jerseys (Gale Sayers and Wes Unseld) worth $800. He got suspended for the rest of the year as it fell under the category of being paid to play.

[Merivigian]

Thanks for the conformation!

[g5bay]

lol

[abczby]

Sony is proving how pathetic they really are.

[denero1]

i know right abczby atleast send out something worth while so you forge and your cheap not good

[AdventShadow01]

Sony should hire pheonix Wright. He never looses a case.

[radphil]

I find it funny how people say this is a dumb move, but in actuality it's somewhat smart. If it's true that he has a "donations" box below a specific point within the site, than that's definitely cause for concern to bring up in court. If it does go directly towards him, he'll have to answer upon that.

[RoyMustang]

That sword cost 5000 dollahs!

[artsaber]

Sony goes to GeoHotz's site and donate $1 to his Paypal account. From the onset, it looks foolish and underhanded, but it isn't at all. It is actually a great chess move and I can tell you why. Because Sony apparently did this, they do not have to bother with subpoenaing one single third party transaction from George Hotz paypal account, they have a transaction from their own records that is admissible as evidence that GeoHotz can, has, and possibly gains revenue for participating in illegal activity.

This is not about Sony being underhanded, this is all about winning the case by smart legal strategy. Talk all the crap you want, but Sony's $1 transaction that was a smart legal move. This proves GeoHotz's capability and willingness to profit from malicious activity against Sony. By simply making payment as an option, it speaks volumes that George Hotz sought to gain monetarily from his online activities.

These lawyers are pretty good, they are breaking this case down in chunks and dissecting their winning strategy. GeoHotz may be in over his head, he is at least in for a good fight this time. He should've consulted a lawyer before he did all this shyt(and if he did, he may need a new one - never mind, there is a new article claiming he did get a hotshot lawyer).

Now my question is how did he afford that fancy lawyer, hmmmm. Paypal donations maybe? Just speculating, lol.

[iceman06]

That lawyer is probably taking the case pro bono just for the publicity alone. Even with a loss on the record, being able to go toe to toe with the big bad companies of the world can't do anything but boost the profitability of a law firm. Is it possible that lawyers are the only profession that can win and lose at the same time!?!?

[TABSF]

Come on though Sony could be framing him.

Lets say I was hacking, and Sony sent $1 to my PayPal, of course it would clear regardless.

[danielle007]

With a case like this, it'll be a fight to get anything to stick. It's good they're going all out, there'd be no way for them to win otherwise. This was a smart move, an attempt to get 100% proof, and to get him found guilty.

I can't wait to find out the result of all this.

[jerethdagryphon]

actually its not as hard as you think his custom fimware is a dirivitive of sonys agreed
sony hold copyright on that

and dirivitive works are a violation of copyright its clearly stated in the definition

Definition
Legal monopoly that protects published or unpublished original work (for the duration of its author's life plus 50 years) from unauthorized duplication without due credit and compensation. Copyright covers not only books but also advertisements, articles, graphic designs, labels, letters (including emails), lyrics, maps, musical compositions, product designs, etc. According to the major international intellectual-property protection treaties (Berne Convention, Universal Copyright Convention, and WIPO Copyright Treaty) five rights are associated with a copyright: the right to: (1) Reproduce the work in any form, language, or medium. (2) Adapt or derive more works from it. (3) Make and distribute its copies. (4) Perform it in public. (5) Display or exhibit it in public. To acquire a valid copyright, a work must have originality and some modicum of creativity. However, what is protected under copyright is the 'expression' or 'embodiment' of an idea, and not the idea itself. A copyright is not equivalent of legal-prohibition of plagiarism (which is an unethical and unprofessional conduct, but not an offense), and does not apply to factual information.

as for dirivitive work
A derivative work is a new, original product that includes aspects of a preexisting, already copyrighted work. Also known as a "new version," derivative works can include musical arrangements, motion pictures, art reproductions, sound recordings or translations. They can also include dramatizations and fictionalizations, such as a movie based on a play.

A work is derivative if it incorporates copyrightable material. For example, if you develop a television show based on a book, the new show would be considered a derivative work under copyright law.

On the other hand, a new work is classified as new, not derivative, if it does not actually incorporate any copyrightable material from that preexisting work.

Other examples of derivative works include:

Making a motion picture based on a play
Translating an English novel into Spanish
Remixing previously released tracks with new instrumentation
Making a sculpture based on a drawing
Creating a painting based on a photograph
Who Can Produce Derivative Works?

Only the copyright owner has the exclusive right to produce, and profit from, an original work by making a new derivative work. A copyright owner can grant permission to someone else to make a derivative work based on the original. If permission is not granted, the secondary work is considered to be a copy of the original. This makes the new work's originator liable for copyright infringement. Derivative work laws protect the copyright owner from having his or her original work reproduced without his or her consent.

the key he used is sonys he incorperated that into his firmware to sign it. therfore it is a dirivitive work and a copyright violation.

[ShiftyLookingCow]

LMAO That photoshopped pic of GeoHot on PS3News is really funny. Attached to my comment.

[Donthizz]

maybe that $1 will help Geohot with his legal fees..LOL

[HurstDarkStar]

geo needs phoenix wright like now!

[ShiftyLookingCow]

LOL Go through the Court Record on the lower screen and press Present on "$1 from Sony".

OBJECTION!!!!
~~~~Phoenix Wright Music plays~~~~
....and the rest is history.

[Bolts]

I'm the mind behind a massive PS3 hacking and pirating organization, and we only only accept donations in multimillions dollars amount. You know what to do.

[iceman06]

Wait...didn't I help you with that one??? *wink..wink*

[Sarobi]

Geo will win this, microsoft is without a doubt secretly backing him up XD

[Masterchef2007]

This is just stupid sony would never do a thing like this. Probably some freak wanting to get sony in trouble

[marichuu]

Donations != profit for his work.
People donate of their free will. They're not forced to pay for anything.

[DelbertGrady]

If Sony wins this I'm sure you'll all get free rootkits for your PS3's :)

[joeorc]

@DelbertGrady

just exactly like

the back door's that Microsoft has into every computer with the Windows OS on their system..root kit, back door ..same thing just a Different Name

but thank you for bringing that up..all companies do that some are just better at hiding the fact they do that.

lol

[denero1]

it was a low move by sony go look up any geohot post it will say please do not donate there are scammers out there i do not take donations

[joeorc]

a person like George is going to have a donation button on his site that the money goes to some other person or organization an not to himself. so if it does there should be no problem checking right?

[xtremegamerage]

Wonder if he'll be joking about the PSP2 when he has a large ---- in this a$$, rofl.

Seriously though. I understand people hacking into things and it's good to enable things that should be there by default, or are. But locked away. etc.

But you all know, you can get anything on iphone free of charge, any game, any app, any time. That is due to hacking.

Stating that he does not understand why SONY are after him, i thought this guy was clever.

http://geohot.com/

Donations Donations Donations.

Oh and geohot.

The PS3 was completely safe until people like yourself started fking with it. Getting codes and giving them out for free.

[Honky Kong]

sony.............

[GeohotzForPrez]

Wow, I respected Sony. But this? This is just cold.
Ice ice cold.

[Haseo106]

Nice Sony! $1 for a guy who should be ashamed of himself!

[ATi_Elite]

Donations CAN and are considered earned revenue. NON TAXable in SOME cases if the organization qualifies but the DONATIONS are still seen as profit and are TAXABLE. GEOHOT is NOT a NON-profit organization so therefore he would have to pay taxes on all DONATIONS received.

Here's the the break down, GEOHOT does not have a IRS form irc501(c)(3) on file declaring his site a NON-PROFIT organization. I know this for certain because only places of worship (Church), REd Cross, Political Action Committees and places like that are Tax-Exempt. Therefore he has to pay taxes and his site is considered a BUSINESS.

So if he posted Sony hacks on his site while having a paypal donation box set-up and if SOny (allegedly) sent him $1 and if he accepted it.......THEN HE IS SCREWED!

I don't see this as Sony being evil, I see this as Sony protecting the PS3 from piracy (which is why they got rid of linux and other features to prevent this very thing).

Anybody complaining about wanting Homebrew this or OS that go buy a PC seriously it's an OPEN platform and you can Homebrew or Emulator yourself silly. The PS3 is a closed system and if Naughty Dogg Santa Monica GG and everybody else have to pay Sony (License Fee) to make games on the PS3 then why should YOU or anybody else get to make games or apps on it for FREE.

Sony is in the RIGHT.

http://www.irs.gov/charitie...

[joeorc]

100% agreement

an i doubt George followed

http://www.robertsrules.com...

smile...

[zerox505]

GUEYZ BOXXYBABE IS BACK :D

[kewlkat007]

That's quite pathetic...The bait did not work..sony looking like fools right now.

Like someone stated, the money could of gone to marketing..

[joeorc]

@kewlkat007

who said anything about Bait?

you put a donation button on your site you are just asking the IRS to get all in your Business if everything is not done to tax law. this forces the one who takes donations to show that he's following the rules.

if he's shown to break security systems than he better be able to show to at least follow the same tax laws that everyone else has to follow..right?

unless he's a non profit or is he for profit..does he even run Business..he stated on attack of the Show he has more contract's he's looking at right now..what contract's is he talking about..getting paid for a hack you still have to pay taxes on such Hacking if your being paid to do it.

This kind of insight into your finances would be quite expected if your going to take on a corp. the size of Sony or any other you had better be ready.

it's not something to be mad about it's just Business!

what's he going to say Sorry judge i left my big boy pants at home..no i do not have any tax records? umm that's

What Does Tax Evasion Mean?
An illegal practice where a person, organization or corporation intentionally avoids paying his/her/its true tax liability. Those caught evading taxes are generally subject to criminal charges and substantial penalties.

now he could be using:

Tax avoidance is the legal utilization of the tax regime to one's own advantage, to reduce the amount of tax that is payable by means that are within the law. The United States Supreme Court has stated that "The legal right of an individual to decrease the amount of what would otherwise be his taxes or altogether avoid them, by means which the law permits, cannot be doubted." See Gregory v. Helvering.

[Vip3r]

lol'd

But yeah, I really hate childish technicalities like this. Even though I hope the hacker gets what's coming to him for causing this mess in the first place.

[Garnett]

SONY IS BRIBING GAME REVIEWERS CONFIRMED!!!!!!

/Sarcasm

Even if Sony was losing money with the PS3, $1 wouldn't prove much.

[zero_cool]

One of two things happen to hackers they either given jobs or fined up the a$$ & never heard from again.

[TheTruth89]

AHAHHA Nice move Sony, kick his bastard ass!

[theroadtoruin]

LMAO. win.

[renegade]

Off course he going to be rich bitch hand slapped stupid cunt,sony better may ent him 50cents than dollar is too much for him.

[Zhuqiaomon]

SONY SONY EASYYYYYYYYYYY!!!

[ReBurn]

So if Sony sends $1 to my Paypal account does that mean I'm accepting donations for whatever they believe I'm accepting donations for? That particular piece of evidence is the textbook example of circumstantial. And it is also entrapment, because they're trying to bait him into performing the action that they're accusing him of.

I guess they're going to throw everything they've got at the wall and hope that at least some of it sticks.

[GarandShooter]

It's not entrapment, as that term is reserved for the actions of law enforcement officials only, and basically means they coerced someone into breaking the law who otherwise wouldn't have.

If geohot willfully acts and willfully has a donation button on his site, you'd be hard pressed to prove entrapment even if a law enforcement official made the donation.

Secondly, whether it is circumstantial or not is irrelevant at best and incorrect at worst. Circumstantial evidence is indirect evidence that supports other facts of the case. If geohot runs a site promoting illegal activity and accepts donations on that site, it could be seen as direct evidence.

Lastly, what you fail to realize, is that circumstantial evidence is FULLY ADMISSIBLE in court and does not legally bear less weight than direct evidence.

[ReBurn]

Geohot didn't have a donation link on his site. In fact, he said on his site that any donation links were scams and that he wasn't looking for donations.

And just because evidence is FULLY ADMISSIBLE in court doesn't mean that it is good evidence.

The $1 donation was lame. Just because someone has a Paypal account doesn't mean anything.

[GarandShooter]

'Geohot didn't have a donation link on his site. In fact, he said on his site that any donation links were scams and that he wasn't looking for donations.'

Which is it, there weren't any or they were scams? Or were these scam links on other sites?

Serious question, because when I followed a link to his site it was down due to the lawsuit.

[Kon]

What a dumb move from sony