How Not To Get Your Live Account Hacked Like Dan Hsu

Having one’s online account “hacked” by one of the ‘net’s more shady of denizens can happen to anyone — even video game journalist vet Dan “Shoe” Hsu. The former EGM editor-in-chief (and IGN moonlighter) writes about the experience of recently having his Xbox Live account swiped by a nefarious Xbox 360 gamer — a crime now festering at the City of San Francisco’s police department, the Computer Fraud Division of the police department in Redmond, WA, and the Computer Crimes Division of the FBI.

Most of the “hacking” is done via social engineering, not at some server farm chipping away at your password until it reveals it’s actually “password” or “asdf.” Xbox Live chat and customer support reps are just as efficient hacking methods. Fortunately, Hsu’s loss and aggravation is your gain. He provide seven handy tips for shielding your account from hacker harm, a must read if you’re new to the Xbox Live subscription game.

Hacked on Xbox 360: A Victim’s Tale [IGN]