Guns are a blazing over at Sony’s legal branch, with a new round of filings that indicate the firm is seeking to subpoena user accounts and related data from several information havens for PS3 hacks. This includes the likes of Slashdot, YouTube, Twitter, PSX-Scene, and Github. Sony wants the sites to furnish “all information and documents” that reproduce “server logs, IP address logs, account
information, account access records, and application or registration forms.”

This comes as part of an effort to expand the ongoing case it is building against the PS3 hacking scene. Additionally, Sony is actively searching for information on a number of homebrew developers involved in the creation of custom firmware and related hacks, including Waninkoko, Graf_Chokolo, and KaKaRoTo. It seems just about every hacker that’s made waves in the scene is now in Sony’s legal crosshairs.

More  as it breaks. You can download the latest batch of filings here.

George “geohot” Hotz is not succumbing to Sony’s recently granted TRO, not without a fight. Hotz’s lawyer, Stewart Keller, has served up papers arguing why Sony’s basis for jurisdiction in California is flawed.

Specifically, Keller points out that SCEA is not responsible for creating the PS3, as Sony is a Japanese company. He further attacks Sony’s claims of extortion, explaining that Hotz’s request for employment was taken out of context, and not directed at SCEA in particular. The full quote, from the latest filing, reads “If you want your next console to be secure, get in touch with me. Any of you.”

Furthermore, the filing calls for the court to consider the financial burden Hotz is enduring with the case stationed in California. As Keller notes, “Mr. Hotz is a 21 year old New Jersey resident with limited means to defend a suit on the other side of the country.”

You can view the entire filing here.

In response to the onslaught of recent PS3 ‘custom’ firmware releases that have hit the homebrew scene, developer KaKaRoTo of PSFreedom fame has teased a new project he is working on along with other prominent devs: PS3MFW.

In essence, it’s an all-in-one customizable tool that allows users to build their own modified firmware. It includes an API-driven framework that “facilitates the modification process.” Additionally, it’s completely open-source, which means qualified contributions are welcomed. The interface, as pictured above, is fairly straightforward and comes with a wide range of options. This includes the ability to remove unwanted icons from the XMB and install various homebrew-enabling patches.

Project PS3MFW Announced [PS3MFW]

Are Sony’s lawyers grasping at straws to take down PS3 hacker George “Geohot” Hotz?

In order to establish personal justification in the state of California, the latest round of court documents once again attempt to pin Hotz’s hacking efforts under the terms of the PSN user agreement. It also includes evidence to support such a claim, notably that Hotz has a registered PSN user account under the alias of ‘Geo1Hotz’

Here’s the kicker: even Sony admits it has no actual proof that Hotz himself registered the account, noting that “Even if Hotz is not the user registered as Geo1Hotz, he could be registered to use the network under another alias.” Pure conjecture.

Weak evidence there, we’d say. Hard to see the Court not dismissing this. At the very least, it looks like this case will move to New Jersey, Geohot’s home state. It was already somewhat evident from Judge Susan Illston’s say on the matter last week.

Earlier this week, Sony’s legal team rushed to file a temporary restraining order against famed hacker George “Geohot” Hotz following the recent publication of his firmware 3.55 jailbreak. The motion called for the impoundment of electronic devices and related computer equipment that was used to hack the PS3.

Chalk up a win for Geohot, as US District Judge Susan Illston blocked said TRO today, noting that Hotz’s use of Twitter, PayPal, and YouTube does not establish personal jurisdiction, according to a Wired report.

But if using Twitter or Facebook is enough to bring a case to San Francisco, “the entire universe would be subject to my jurisdiction,” the judge told the Sony attorney about his argument.

Granted, Geohot isn’t in the clear yet — the judge refrained from issuing a formal ruling, noting her concerns over whether the case should be heard in California over Hotz’s home state of New Jersey. “Serious questions have been raised here,” she said, referring to Sony’s choice of jurisdiction.

Update: G4TV segment with Geohot is above. Be patient as the video is still processing. Kudos to YouTube user TitusF2 for capping this!

Currently in the legal crosshairs of SCEA, famed hacker George “Geohot” Hotz will appear on G4TV’s ‘Attack of the Show’ later tonight at 7 p.m. EST, as revealed on his official site. We’ll update this with a link to the video once it’s live.

In related courtroom drama, today’s filings indicate that the hearing date for Sony’s motion to place a temporary restraining order on Hotz has been pushed back by a day. It’s now scheduled for Friday, January 14 at 9:00 a.m.

Sony’s legal suits are at it again, filing a lawsuit against famed hacker George “Geohot” Hotz and the fail0verflow team. Along with Hotz, it specifically names Hector Martin and Sven Peter, both of whom gave a revealing presentation on Sony’s broken PS3 security last month at 27C3. 100 other individuals have been targeted as well, although they remain unnamed.

The suit contests that said defendants are in violation of DMCA under U.S. law, pointing to the recent publication of the PS3′s encryption routines and subsequent release of Hotz’s firmware 3.55 jailbreak.

It seems Sony isn’t letting this slide, not without a fight. More as it breaks. For those unable to access Geohot’s site, we’ve mirrored the relevant court orders in PDF format below. more »

Update: As promised, Geohot has released his homebrew signing tools for 3.55. It can be used to convert ELFs to valid NPDRM SELFs.

Following the emergence of the first proof of concept custom firmware, esteemed hacker George “Geohot” Hotz releases a full-blown jailbreak for firmware 3.55. What’s more, is that it comes in the form of a PUP patch file. Those already on 3.55 can run it to enjoy homebrew goodness, with one small caveat: Geohot notes that any PKGs written for 3.41 will not run on 3.55.

Don’t sweat it, though. New signing tools are on the way, according to Geohot, which will restore compatibility. Until those are released, those still on 3.41 may want to hold off on updating to 3.55. We also recommend you install the patch file on a vanilla, non-modified 3.55.

Per Geohot’s wishes in regards to mirroring, you can grab the patch PUP over at his official site. The firmware 3.55 update can be found over in our download section.

While the PS3′s security has been blown wide open as a result of recent hacking efforts, that isn’t stopping Sony from fighting the good fight. In a recent interview with Edge Magazine, a Sony spokesperson claims that a series of network updates are on the way to combat these developments.

Sony would not spare details on the upcoming firmware, declining to provide further information due to the sensitive nature of security issues.

It’ll be interesting to see how this pans out, but we reckon the odds won’t be in favor of Sony this time. With the root key out in the open, the only remedy is a hardware change.

In fact, well-known hackers are already downplaying Sony’s claims. In a BBC interview, fail0verflow member pytey noted that “The complete console is compromised – there is no way back. The only way to fix this is to issue new hardware. Sony will have to accept this.”

Update #2: Bubbletune has published version 1.2b, which is a quick fix that reverts a change made in 1.2.

Update: Now, that was quick — Bubbletune has issued a bugfix that fixes an issue with category detection. The supplied readme has also been given an overhaul. Grab the updated download below.

With the advent of 6.20 TN comes a new version of Bubbletune’s handy Game Categories plugin, which allows users to categorize games and homebrew.

This release introduces a ‘By Category’ folder sort mode, adding to the existing ‘By Expiration Date’ option. Additionally, details for each XMB item, such as the game type and firmware info, are displayed underneath the corresponding icon. For an example, check out the screen grab above.

For more details head on over to the release thread.

Download Game Categories Light v1.2b