Do you think that corporations do seem to lack a sense of empathy at times? Take this particular case for instance – Sony has informed a victim of fraud that he has to pay the outstanding charge as a result of his Playstation account being hacked, or to remain locked out indefinitely, which would mean his console would end up as an expensive paperweight. Just what kind of archaic thinking is this?
Back in February this year, Ben Smyth’s account was hacked, with £49.99 fraudulently charged to his credit card. His details were then altered by Sony, with Sony informing him that this situation was “under investigation”. Sony then allegedly did not want to provide a refund, but Smyth managed to inform his credit card provider to prevent the payment.
Fast forward a couple of months later, and Sony has frozen his Playstation account due to the outstanding amount, and cited that the £49.99 happens to fall under his responsibility to clear, all without disputing the fraudulent nature of the payment, how crass is that? This means Smyth is not able to enjoy over £1,000-worth of purchased software and hardware.
Smyth shared, “I was advised on the telephone by Sony support that all use, including fraudulent activities committed by an unknown third party, is my responsibility. He advised me that Sony takes no responsibility for fraudulent use of my credit card details and security rests solely with me.”
It does look as though Sony is hiding behind the safety net of the Terms & Conditions at the moment for cases such as these.
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