Second Life Database Hacked

While checking out Techcrunch today, saw an article about Second Life being hacked and user information being stolen. The database did not include credit card info, apparently that is kept in a different, hopefully more secure, database.

High profile virtual reality game Second Life reported today that one of its databases containing unencrypted user information was breached two days ago. The company confirmed that this is the first time user data has been breached since the service opened for public use in 2003. The database did not include customer credit card numbers, a requirement to register for the game (correction, that’s not the case anymore), as they were kept in a different database. The breached database did include unencrypted names and addresses, and the encrypted passwords and encrypted payment information of all Second Life users.

Now, I haven’t played the game myself yet, I’ve already created a user, just haven’t had time to check it out, but I’ve heard some good stories about some of the stuff that is going on in there, now it’s not all dirty, but I can imagine some people sweating right now if any of the info included logs of some of the stuff they did. As Michael said, “Honey, that furry avatar meant nothing to me”, hehe. Could get ugly, would you consider [tag]virtual sex[/tag] cheating or just playing around? I guess it would depend on the person you ask.

Posted by Jimmy Daniels Posted in: Second Life, Web 2.0 No Comments » September 2006

The Second Life Situation

This is pretty funny, and pretty much how I felt about Second Life, at least until Wayne and Eric showed me some stuff last night. It is pretty cool, and I can definitely see how some people can get lost in there, especially as their Second Life becomes better than real life. But, I still don’t see me putting much time into it yet. You can definitely tell there will be some money changing hands as big brands, like Walmart, are researching the heck out of it.

Wayne Porter really likes Second Life, as you can tell, and will probably sell me on its benefits eventually. This article is about how big brands are coming but Second Lifers are resistant, since they aren’t part of the conversation.

Anything else is completely eye-candy- a billboard. Second Life is about raw creativity…and it is really only the beginning. The smaller, more nimble brand will master it, and new brands will emerge FROM IT.

Posted by Jimmy Daniels Posted in: Online Gaming, Second Life No Comments » August 2006