Sony Details Identity Theft Protection For Europe

Sony has released details regarding the identity theft protection program that will be made available for European PSN users affected by the recent security breach. The company has enlisted the services of Affinion International Limited, an identity protection service in Europe, to offer free protection for a period of 12 months. This coverage can soon be claimed by PSN users in the UK, Franch, Spain, Italy and Germany. This service will cover three major areas: the monitoring of personal information, a dedicated helpline that affected users can call, and insurance that covers any identity fraud that may arise as a result of the PSN breach. Regarding coverage for other EU countries, Nick Caplin, Head of Communications at SCEE, said in a PlayStation Blog post, "We are still working to identify similar services for those countries not covered by this offering, and this will depend on reputable businesses offering appropriate services." "Identifying such programs for the many countries within the SCEE region is a very complicated process. Each country has a different way of handling identity theft; whilst some offer relatively sophisticated services, others may not." "Therefore, we must stress that this is an ongoing process which will see new identity theft protection programmes identified where possible." Caplin noted that information regarding how to claim this free service will be made available via the PlayStation blog shortly. A similar insurance offer is also available to U.S. PSN users, as detailed earlier in the month. Sony said that it will go through identity protection firm Debix to offer AllClear ID Plus for free to PSN and Qriocity users in the U.S. for 12 months.