Deus Ex hack: "Game not at risk"

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 13 May, 2011

Hacker claims he's being "framed".

The group implicated in this week's Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Eidos websites compromise has told Eurogamer that there is no risk of the game being leaked onto the internet.

On Wednesday hackers broke into Square Enix's official Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Eidos websites and stole the personal data of "at least" 80,000 registered users.

Yesterday the Deus Ex website, user forum, and Eidos.com were unreachable. For a brief period on Wednesday the sites displayed a defacement banner that read "Owned by Chippy1337" along with several names and hacker handles of those supposedly responsible for the break-in.

According to logs lifted from the chatroom used by those responsible, the hackers are discussing whether to leak the "src", leading some to speculate that the source code of Deus Ex: Human Revolution itself could hit the internet before launch.

But "Venuism", who was name-checked in the image left on the website following the intrusion, told Eurogamer this morning that the "src" reference made in the chat logs refers to the Deus Ex website and not the game – and suggested the stolen information had already been leaked.

It had been suggested that the attack was conducted by a splinter cell of Anonymous, the group blamed by Sony for last month's devastating PlayStation Network compromise.

But Venuism, speaking for a group dissatisfied at being blamed for the hack, said it had nothing to do with Anonymous. He also insisted that he, along with others, are being "framed" by rival hackers.

"We are being blamed/framed because we share a history with some of the people responsible for this hack," he told Eurogamer.

"The main perpetrator "ev0" aka "xyz" has a vendetta against us over this history. The reasoning behind it was most likely that he thinks we will get into trouble with authorities.

"He isn't responsible for the 'hack' since he is not really capable, he is however responsible for defacing of the sites and the leaking of the information.

"The majority of the people who knew and participated in the hack are from Gnosis, the group responsible for hack of Gawker late last year, who have insisted they are not Anonymous.

"We knew about the hack yesterday, and one of us went as far as to contact Eidos to try and warn them about a potential data leak. They were, however, unreceptive and insisted in the event something like this happened it would be an internal matter."

Venuism said he and his friends like Deus Ex and "do not want to hurt people around the internet". "That's not our style," he said.

"We are not 'whitehats', but we will not scam you, steal credit cards and do dirty stuff with them."

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (30) Latest comment 1 year ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • metalangel #1 1 year ago

    This is why I hate having to register for every stupid website just to be allowed to browse its forum.

  • carlitoswagon #2 1 year ago

    Who cares

  • Machetazo #3 1 year ago

    Someone needs to blow away the little smokescreen of anonymity that's handily being draped around these online crimes.
    Most people go to the show to see the magician perform, not the glamorous assistants :p
    Edited by Machetazo at 13/05/11 @ 12:03

  • geeza2020 #4 1 year ago

    Getting a bit cheesed off with these hackers now. Whats the bloody point? Get a job, wankers.

  • kalinichenko #5 1 year ago

    "We knew about the hack yesterday, and one of us went as far as to contact Eidos to try and warn them about a potential data leak. They were, however, unreceptive and insisted in the event something like this happened it would be an internal matter."

    well,well,well

    btw '''Chippy1337'' sounds like a pornstar's name.
    Edited by kalinichenko at 13/05/11 @ 12:15

  • SwashbucklingStuff #6 1 year ago

    kalinichenko: ''Chippy1337'' sounds like a pornstar's name.

    Er....no it doesn't. Last time I checked androids weren't starring in porn films yet. They're pencilled in for 2021 though.

  • Felwyn #7 1 year ago

    oh no my precious data.................lol

  • roquey Verified Lead Quality Assurance Tester and Compliance Specialist, Universally Speaking #8 1 year ago

    "Someone needs to blow away the little smokescreen of anonymity that's handily being draped around these online crimes. "

    by the looks of it you can go talk to then and some of them even put their real names up....

  • initialsBB #9 1 year ago

    Anyone else have a feeling this is all PR ?

  • StolenGlory #10 1 year ago

    "But Venuism claims that the Deus Ex hack has nothing to do with Anonymous. He also insisted that he, along with others, are being "framed" by rival hackers."

    Cry me a river.

  • poke50uk Verified Designer and Games Programmer, Lockwood Publishing Ltd #11 1 year ago

    Sounds like a bunch of adolescent kids arguing, blaming each other/setting each other up/not being mature at all...

    ..oh wait... they are kids... well least some of them.

    Seriously.. they need to realise that if your involved in any mess like this, its going to come and bite you back one day. Actions have repercussions and if you truly believe that your not at fault when someone frames you like this - you have to re-examine your past actions to see what has caused the event to happen.

    As for myself, I have no piety for this guy being framed, and a gaming website should give none of its time other just to say "yeah, bunch of people thought it was a laugh to steal your data again from X site, X site said sorry and change your passwords". Giving these people their publicity is exactly what they want - its like handing over the ransom money for terrorists or showing their videos on TV ¬_¬

  • arcam #12 1 year ago

    @cheeky_error

    Actually this is an informed article for once.

    They've actually spoken to this guy (or at least received an email from him) and reported what he said, rather than just making assumptions.

  • Bigglesworth #13 1 year ago

    Bloody hell, Anonymous is the new Al-Qaeda. Next thing we know, America will declare war on them.

  • HyperTails #14 1 year ago

    Oh, so a hacker claims he's 'framed', and we're supposed to believe him? He's hardly gonna' hack Eidos then run around going 'yes, it was really ME all along, and there's NOTHING you can do to stop me, mwahahahahahaha'.

    Had enough of these hacker scum. The sooner the FBI catch these little nerds, the better.

  • arcam #15 1 year ago

    He's hardly gonna' hack Eidos then run around going 'yes, it was really ME all along, and there's NOTHING you can do to stop me, mwahahahahahaha'

    But the screenshot shows that he wrote his name on the defaced site. So either he is basically running around going: "yes it was ME", or someone else wrote his name there to implicate him.

    And presumably Eidos could confirm that someone contacted them yesterday to warn them, although I doubt that person would have given their identity.

  • Arry2007uk #16 1 year ago

    Oh good, now the news is full of the internal politics of hacking groups... yay.

    Seriously though, it seems there's a surge of hackers at the moment who feel they deserve to be infamous.

  • nuanimal #17 1 year ago

    Not I don't much like Anonymous. And don't care too much about Gnosis.

    But which are are the bigger arseholes? There's only one way to tell...

    FIGHT!!!

  • epiazk #18 1 year ago

    @kalinichenko

    I don't get angry about much politically, you will never see me on the streets rioting...

    Except with regards to the internet. This is so good i'm convinced the government will try to take it from us, please don't encourage it.

    Careful what you wish for :/

  • HyperTails #19 1 year ago

    @arcam

    Yes, but that's kinda' the point. His name may of been plastered all over the site, but its then easy for him to say 'no no, not me, rival hackers!'. All the while smiling smugly to himself.

    Regardless, i'm sure this guy is now suspect no.1 and shitting himself over it.

  • azic #20 1 year ago

    Whats with the spate of Cyber Crime?
    Is the govt trying to push through some Online "We can see what you do online" law.
    'Enemy of the State' stuff going on here!!!

  • arcam #21 1 year ago

    Regardless, i'm sure this guy is now suspect no.1 and shitting himself over it.

    Why would he put his own name on there and then shit himself about his name being on there? Your theory makes no sense.

  • Ranger101 #22 1 year ago

    @azic - actually yes - there's one going through the EU right now, plus a couple in the US and Canada.

  • bratmandu #23 1 year ago

    I guess they used a multitool to hack in and disable the cameras, clear turret targeting parameters, and chopped up any resistance with the dragon tooth sword. I'm here all week folks.

  • L0cky #24 1 year ago

    @Bigglesworth "Bloody hell, Anonymous is the new Al-Qaeda. Next thing we know, America will declare war on them."

    I was going to say that too.

    One huge monolithic cyber terrorist organisation is much easier to use to justify sweeping legal changes and restrictions on rights. Wouldn't surprise me if all internet crime was attributed Anonymous long after they have dwindled and disappeared; much like how 99% of terrorism is attributed to Al-Qaeda despite them being a tiny rag tag band of inept fugitives.

    It also makes me wish they never chose that name; they now make anonymity an easy first target.

  • Mydoom #25 1 year ago

    as i predicted it only takes one rouge hacker to expose the rest.

    " and the flood of hacker details and back grounds will start to flow"
    -
    - -
    - (O) -
    'an eye for an eye'
    - (O) -
    - -
    -

  • MerricK #26 1 year ago

    What noobs!

    Now I dont know much about hacking but I am taking lessons. lesson 1.) create a nickname that doesnt include your full name in it and create an image file of it.

  • HyperTails #27 1 year ago

    Yeah arcam, agreed. Wasn't thinking it through properly.

  • BuddyChrist #28 1 year ago

    How to spot a 'frame'

    *finds note in broken into house*

    "got you beehutches!
    Btw my name is TrevyB, I am a bender and have no weiner. My address is...etc"

  • HarryTuttle #29 1 year ago

    Jesus, hackers are colossal twats.

    Please fuck the fuck off and stop fucking up the net for the socially competent.

    Thanks.

  • Murton #30 1 year ago

    If hackers aren't above taking down sites and leaving false evidence to implicate another who's to say they aren't above taking down a site, leaving evidence to implicate themselves only to later claim that someone else must have done it and placed fabricated evidence to implicate them?

    You tried to warn Eidos/Enix, and that's commendable, but why not go the whole hog and report them to the authorities? Complete with some decent evidence such as name, location, technical information that can be used to trace them etc. If a buddy of mine, or even an ex-buddy of mine tried to blame me for something he did that would be gloves off time, he tried to screw you and you're protecting him? Screw that, send him down, maybe then all this hacking nonsense will go back to the small scale pissing contest that didn't really hurt anyone and stop being this huge unstoppable avalanche of shit that is has become now.