As many gamers found out Christmas Day, both Microsoft’s Xbox Live and Sony’s PlayStation Network were affected by DDoS attacks helmed by the now-infamous group – Lizard Squad – causing many new (and current console) owners to be unable to log in to the aforementioned services.
In a Skype interview with Sky News, one of the masterminds allegedly behind Lizard Squad’s Christmas Day attack, known only as “Ryan” has spoken out, revealing the motivations behind the group’s attacks – the most important being exposing Microsoft and Sony’s poor cyber security.
Read more on what Ryan had to say about Lizard Squad’s motivations after the break.
Lizard Squad Member on Christmas Day Attacks
In the aforementioned interview, Ryan started about by saying that the attacks were led by 2 to 3 individuals. He also stated that he had no regrets about forcing “a couple of kids to spend their time with their families instead of playing games.“
Ryan admitted that he and the members of Lizard Squad considered the Christmas Day DDoS attacks as a kind of game, done partly for their own amusement. He also disclosed the general size and scope of Lizard Squad, stating that the group is fairly small and includes a number of individuals under the age of 20.
That said, he stated that the group has “massive capability to take down networks like this” (such as Xbox Live and PSN).
Ryan stated the following regarding the attacks and the reasoning behind them:
“This attack was basically done by three people. We had a couple of people from outside the group helping with the attacks, helping us a little bit, but most of the traffic was coming from one or two people.
(We did it) mostly to raise awareness – and to amuse ourselves. Also, one of the big aspects here was raising awareness regarding the low state of computer security at these companies. Because these companies make tens of millions every month from subscriber fees, and that doesn’t even include purchases made by their customers. They should have more than enough funding to be able to protect against these attacks. And if they can’t protect against the attacks on their core business networks, then I don’t think they’re really doing that much on their overall level of security.
And the customers are still giving these companies their credit card numbers and such.
It is sort of a game for us I have to admit. I completely understand that it’s a bit unethical. I’d be rather worried if those people didn’t have anything better to do than play games on their consoles on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I mean I can’t really feel bad. I might have forced a couple of kids to spend their time with their families instead of playing games.“
As of this writing, Xbox Live is back up and running, with PlayStation Network still experiencing various issues.
What are your thoughts on Lizard Squad’s motivations? Is there some merit to be found in their argument, or are they just a group of kids trying to annoy as many people as possible? Or is it something totally different?
Let us know in the comments section below! As always, stay tuned to Gamer Headlines for the latest in video game and technology news.