Xbox Live has been a bit of a mess lately, with the usually rock-solid network having more than its share of connectivity issues and downtime. It’s not the sort of experience people who’re paying extra to use are likely to accept, and people are growing increasingly angry.
Phil Spencer’s been trying to calm things, saying he’s “very sorry” for the outages.
This is the Twitter handle to follow get up to date status. Very sorry for the current issues. https://t.co/e3u1niGHOl
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) February 23, 2016
And of course, that’s led to more anger – but the anger is misdirected. Xbox Live’s current woes are because of a group of “hackers” who’ve been attacking the service with a large-scale Direct Denial of Service attacks. Why are they doing this?
Yeah, you guessed it, it’s to help you! According to said “hackers” they’re bringing Xbox Live to its knees because the service lacks security; security you as a user should have, and obviously would prefer to have over a functional online service.
“Well, didn’t even take as long as I thought,” a member of the hacking group New World Hackers told Newsweek. “We attacked Xbox to protest. Major companies like this have massive servers but no real protection. We want Xbox to update the protection they have, which isn’t much.”
According to the hackers they could knock Xbox Live off the face of the earth.
“[The Xbox attacks] also prove we do have as much power as we say we do, going out to the doubters,” the New World Hackers member says. “[We could] honestly knock Xbox off the face of the Earth.”
Last Updated: February 24, 2016
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 08:47
I fucking hate these people.
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 08:51
I dont like XBOX either but hate is such a strong word.
😛
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 08:52
Well, they offer a complimentary soapbox in the shape of the Xbox, so use it!
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 08:53
We know already dammit….ROFL!
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 08:53
XD
Captain JJ the "saviour"
February 24, 2016 at 09:19
XD
The_Ghost_Skull
February 24, 2016 at 08:48
OOOOOOH A Dos Attack. I think they should rename it to “DooS” Attack. Flooding a server with a bunch of data is hardly crippling nevermind destructive. Go ahead, see how quickly a SWAT team comes through your doors and flashbangs you in the face.
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 08:52
Would pay big bucks to see them pee pee their pants as their door gets kicked down
BakedBagel
February 24, 2016 at 09:41
Like those lizards amirite?
Im sure its the same group of people just under a different name 😛
RustedFaith
February 24, 2016 at 10:31
Actually flooding a server with data is crippling and destructive. I will explain how it works, you flood a server with allot of small requests on whatever service your poison is. Then the server needs to reply on every single small packet or process some information. With millions of requests coming in a second your server cluster cant keep up with all the requests and come to a standstill and crash.
This is not some kiddy attack either, you need thousands of zombie machines at your disposal ie a bot network … the concept is simple but to pull it of actually requires quite a bit of skill.
The_Ghost_Skull
February 24, 2016 at 11:22
Dont get me wrong, it totally disrupts the service, but you also gota remember that they screwing with a very big company’s cash flow and reputation. Yes i understand their motives but they going about it all wrong. Yes the best way to make a point is by poking with it, but there are ways to go about doing things the right way.
So im not saying a monkey can do a Dos attack,but how long until these acts put these people in hot water and by chance make things actually worse for everyone else.
But in all honesty, I was affected for a day only due to the fact I have other things to tend to than just play games all day, because you know, life happens.
RustedFaith
February 24, 2016 at 11:40
The thing is they cant do anything about it, if you ever managed massive corporate networks you will know that not even the staff inside the company knows whats really going on.
There are so many legacy systems in these corporates that some jackass installed 10 years ago and no one knows what it does but if it goes down it effects quite a large part of the organization. Usually there is in house developed applications and security comes last …
There is no will from management or directors to change these issues until it becomes a problem because of the massive costs involved to run a tight ship. This is compounded with upper management and project managers not planning properly and the technical dev staff having to rush to get the overpromised product out and make it do shit that its not really designed to do.
Very few tech companies have a secure network and even fewer companies knows whats going on on their network. IT in corporates is more reactive than proactive due to the scope of the problems and lack of knowledge of the infrastructure.
There are a few corporates thats very serious about security like Alan Grey, Clickatell, FNB, Capitech etc. mostly the financial sector.
You will get a scare if you have to see what goes on in your average South African ISP.
TheGamerKnight
February 24, 2016 at 15:29
It’s DDoS (Direct Denial of Service)
The_Ghost_Skull
February 25, 2016 at 00:25
*facepalm* someone misses the point of the whole discussion…C O M P L E T E L Y
PedanticPete
February 25, 2016 at 04:32
It’s DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service).
Francois Knoetze
February 24, 2016 at 08:51
Bloody annoying prats. Seriously piss off and let us play our games!!
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 08:52
Surely DOS attacks have nothing to do with security? If they were really trying to proof XBL’s lack of security why not hack it for real with proof to point out the holes in the security?, because they tried and probably failed, now they’re angry and decided to use DOS attacks….ROFL!
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 08:53
Exactly. These people use the biggest load of bullshit to justify the fact they are inadequate in real life and have to do this to prove to themselves they are hardcore.
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 08:54
Hopefully they get caught and end up in jail. Then they’ll experience hardcore showers
Grimthwacker
February 24, 2016 at 14:43
And not the “Shower with your dad” type of showers. That game will be a little….. different.
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 15:04
hehe
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 08:53
They’re probably still pissed about Quantum Break
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 08:54
SO what, they break the system? hahahah
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 08:55
Yup, some kids would rather break a toy before sharing
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 08:56
Well, to be honest, OvG did that as a child…
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 09:03
Nope, only you….????????????
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 09:03
Why would I be?
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 09:04
Those damn specs…..ROFL!
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 09:16
Yeah, it’s gonna look so purdy!
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 09:23
We’ve all seen your gaming rig by now……????
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 09:37
BWAHAHAHAHA! Finn Lives!
Gerhard Davids
February 24, 2016 at 09:00
Do we know that this is only a DOS?
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 09:02
Had it been anything else these kids would’ve shouted it from the rooftops already….
K1FF J1MB0B (sizzle edition)
February 24, 2016 at 09:06
If you know what you’re doing you can nullify DOS attacks.
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 09:08
Really? Didn’t know that, but then why hasn’t anybody done so yet?
K1FF J1MB0B (sizzle edition)
February 24, 2016 at 09:10
Because lots of sys admins think the solution to everything is restarting services, or just letting things tide over.
RustedFaith
February 24, 2016 at 11:51
Very True
Keep in mind the DDOS is usually just a diversion. The real hacking happens while the admins are occupied with stopping the DDOS.
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 08:55
Sony really should use their money to invest in real AAA games rather than hiring kids to do DOS attacks…..????
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 08:57
Aaaaaand your support is gone
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 08:57
“SCORE!!!!!”
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 08:59
See, Xbox One really is for lonely individuals 😛 It’s what the ONE is for.
Pieter Kruger
February 24, 2016 at 09:01
As long as I don’t disappear into the sea of casual average I’m happy and proud to represent individualism!????
RinceThis
February 24, 2016 at 09:02
No, you’ll only disappear into the DOS attacks 😛
Alien Emperor Trevor
February 24, 2016 at 09:59
Erm, that’s bullshit. Xbox users Kinect with each other all the time!
Hammersteyn
February 24, 2016 at 11:10
He has his moments every now and then
Captain JJ the "saviour"
February 24, 2016 at 09:20
Lost my vote when you said “AAA”
Biff
February 24, 2016 at 10:25
Among the Scumballs of the earth these “hackers” go take your pc’s and stick em up your arses you spotty little twats!
Ghost In The Rift
February 24, 2016 at 12:21
Love it….Robin Hood steals from the rich for the poor “Oh what a hero he is, dude check that bow out, maybe level 32 with stun ruine and 10% critical damage? Hackers attack xbox to up security: “THOSE BASTARDS!!!!”
Ron Bird Jr
February 24, 2016 at 12:29
These outages are becoming costly and a real pain it is worse than PSN of late. it is one of the many problems with downloaded digital content (prices, jobs and they can change the content anytime being the others) add to this MS does not make things right when XBL goes down like this. I am just glad I am not one of those who traded in my 360 at lest I can use it to play disc heck my One will not even play a DVD because they do that silly everything is an app stuff. MS does not like the truth but, the bad almost none functional dashboard is bad enough now the constant XBL outages they need to make this right to gamers or just admit they no longer care about us. MS does not protect our information and keep placing the blame on others for their mistakes.
Coffee High
February 25, 2016 at 09:55
I call B.S. on you. Xbox one still had functionality. XBL was down and I played Peggle on backwards compatibility and some split screen co-op Gears 3 with my son. Then we watched some Batman the animated series (season 2) on DVD and Game Sack on Youtube… Although youtube did take three tries to start up. Netflix did start but I didn’t try it until around 2am, so some functionality issues may have been resolved by then.
As for the rest of your rant, I wish you success in your blame game and hatred of all things Microsoft. I remember when online was a novelty on the original Xbox. Downtime? All the time! Better still, imagine Diablo 2 on a 56k dial up PC connection that ran 28.8 most of the time… Back when most internet connectivity was charged by the hour! You are the kind that blames the power company when a tornado wipes out power lines or blames the car manufacturer in the event of a traffic accident.
Ron Bird Jr
February 25, 2016 at 15:44
Illogical fan boys comparing bananas to Uzis are not worth the time. If I hated all things MS I would not have an Xbox 360 nor would I have bought my XB1 Elite but based on your non fact based rant logic and fact do not get in the way of your fanatical defense of MS even when like now they are wrong.
Coffee High
February 25, 2016 at 20:33
Non fact based rant, yeah. so in 2003 I was playing Diablo 2 online on AOL dial up. My first year of broadband Halo 2 online play was filled with server down issues.
Your banana -Uzi analogy is idiotic to say the least. You want something for your “suffering” just like Audi owners in the 1980’s tried to sue Audi because they crashed their car. Or like the Xcel energy customers who wanted power for free after a tornado took them off the grid for a week in 2012. As for you owning Xbox products, well most slanderers say “I have this” to prove credibility before they spit their venom. Listen to talk radio for examples of planted callers.
Ryanza
February 24, 2016 at 14:43
http://cdn3.denofgeek.us/sites/denofgeekus/files/jolie_0.jpg
Cyberpunk 2077 is coming.
Jose Francisco Arroyo-Velez
February 24, 2016 at 15:28
Listen hackerboys. Your “social warrior” or “cyber warrior” complex is beyond remedy. Quit fucking with people’s services. We signed for and pay gold, we know the risks as with every online service. WE DON’T NEED YOU TO “PROTECT” US IT IS OUR FUCKING PROBLEM. May I remind you that it was useless scum like you who have leaked private info from Sony’s servers and from the iCloud. Quit fucking with gaming, the only enemy you make is the gamers.
Sintinall
February 24, 2016 at 16:23
Would it not be more productive to inform Microsoft when any vulnerabilities are found? Sounds like they just attack and let them figure it out.
Chris Bradshaw
February 25, 2016 at 03:05
Do it. The system is practically on life support anyway.
John Tha Vapster
February 25, 2016 at 05:01
It’s bullshit that us gamers have to suffer cause hackers arent satisfied with anything anyone makes or does. Like seriously saying we could wipe Xbox live off the face of the earth. Like what the fuck did us gamers do to you dicks to threaten everyone like that. Some people spent everything they had to get a Xbox One and to have greedy hackers threatening to shut it down is bullshit. If I ever met a hacker like this in real life I beat your teeth down your throat.. People need to get a life and leave the little man alone.. Got a comment then bring it on Bitches.