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Sony “stuck in 1992” after hacks – except for Macs, iPads and iPhones

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A Sony employee has described the company as being “stuck in 1992” following the massive hacks, with employees desperately trying to avoid using any technology that could be compromised, reports TechCrunch.

“Some people had to send faxes. They were dragging old printers out of storage to cut checks,” she said. “It was crazy.”

The company is even encouraging staff to avoid using phones – presumably including the company’s own Android Xperia smartphones and tablets – in favor of face-to-face meetings.

There has, though, been one exception to the ban on modern technology: Apple kit.

“People using Macs were fine,” she said. She said most work is done on iPads and iPhones.

Sony may need to buy a few extra Macs, with some departments having only one or two computers for the entire office. It is, she said, like “living in an office from ten years ago.”

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Comments

  1. Nick Donnelly - 9 years ago

    An office from 10 years ago. WTF. I knew sony were backward but she’s saying sony had 1 PC for a whole office in 2004. This explains a lot….

    • bdkennedy11 - 9 years ago

      1992 would be 22 years ago.

    • paulywalnuts23 - 9 years ago

      I think what is being said is that only one computer is left usable, i.e. a mac, after the hack…

      • People will never learn. They have clear case scenarios like this one, yet they continue to defend their use of Windoze and Android, and denigrate OS X and iOS.

  2. 89p13 - 9 years ago

    I hope this has most Company IT Departments scrambling to check / upgrade their Security settings and Software.

    Something I was taught in my journalism class – and it’s still as true to day as it was 40+ years ago – “Never put anything in writing that you would not want to see in the New York Times” _ which was quite the newspaper 40+ years ago. I have lived by this mantra ever since! Thank You, Doc Hyde! ;)

    • 89p13 - 9 years ago

      Quick Addendum – Which is why I do NOT have a FaceCrook or Twitter or any other open social media account – outside of posting on a few sites like 9-to-5Mac!.

  3. Pete Mrsich (@petem222) - 9 years ago

    This made me smile this morning.

    • windlasher - 9 years ago

      I was going to say the same thing – 😄 Its not funny, well ok, its pretty damned funny.

      • Pete Mrsich (@petem222) - 9 years ago

        Not so much at Sony’s expense but because Apple’s products were able to save the day – sort of. :)

  4. Andrew Messenger - 9 years ago

    –It is, she said, like “living in an office from ten years ago.”–

    Yes, because 1992 was only ten years ago.

  5. Brian - 9 years ago

    Apple should offer Sony a license to sell Mac OS X and fix all their security problems. It’s the perfect timing.

    • Jordan Biffle - 9 years ago

      It doesn’t matter anymore. Sony spun off Vaio into it’s own company and exited the PC market. So they have no corporate loyalty to using PCs.

  6. prl99 - 9 years ago

    Unfortunate for Sony but great publicity for Apple. Maybe other companies will look at Sony’s experience and realize Apple products are more secure than other platforms. Of course, even Macs can be hacked but it’s usually because someone installed the malware themselves.

  7. airmanchairman - 9 years ago

    Into the Light of the Walled Garden, Sony, where The Divine Sandbox, iCloud Sync, Continuity, Handoff, AirDrop, AirPlay and Time Machine wait to embrace, comfort, protect and delight you!

    Into the Light, hurry now…

  8. vkd108 - 9 years ago

    “It is, she said, like “living in an office from ten years ago.””

    “Sony “stuck in 1992″ after hacks”

    Just a moment;
    2014 – 10 = 2004.
    2014 – 1992 = 22

    Something wrong here somewhere. Either that or somebody is absolutely hopeless at maths.

  9. hmurchison - 9 years ago

    Sony is a comet entering the atmosphere ready to shatter into a thousand pieces.

  10. bdkennedy11 - 9 years ago

    You would think Sony would have learned their lesson the second time they were hacked. They deserved this one.

  11. bdkennedy11 - 9 years ago

    Username: sonyexec
    Password: password

  12. 89p13 - 9 years ago

    After that DRM they put on a bunch of Sony / Columbia CD’s a decade or so ago – I guess Karma really is a bitch!

    I do feel bad for the employees who are “in the trenches” (the non- 6 $ figure worker-bees) who had their identities compromised – but for those higher-up people who think they’re better than the people who buy their “product” – not so much.

  13. Emin İlker Çetinbaş - 9 years ago

    Do what serious corporations do. Separate intranet from the internet. Physically. Ban internet sharing for local machines. It is a requirement for defense industry. For a good reason.

  14. ledsteplin - 9 years ago

    Everyone be reconsidering the higher prices of the Mac now. LOL And they should.

  15. ledsteplin - 9 years ago

    It’ll be nice to see offices full of Macs in the near future!

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Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Ben Lovejoy

Ben Lovejoy is a British technology writer and EU Editor for 9to5Mac. He’s known for his op-eds and diary pieces, exploring his experience of Apple products over time, for a more rounded review. He also writes fiction, with two technothriller novels, a couple of SF shorts and a rom-com!


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