106w ago - Update: The PS Blog has now posted the following message regarding their PSN restoration timeline update, to quote:

"I know you all want to know exactly when the services will be restored. At this time, I can't give you an exact date, as it will likely be at least a few more days. We're terribly sorry for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience as we work through this process."

Today Bloomberg (linked above) reports that Sony expects PSN services, including Qriocity, to be fully restored by May 31, 2011.

To quote: "Sony Corp.'s PlayStation Network and Qriocity online services remain shut as of today, Shigenori Yoshida, a Tokyo-based spokesman said. Sony is uncertain when it can resume the services, Yoshida said by phone today.

The company is in the process of adopting an improved security system and its plan to restart the services fully by May 31 is unchanged, he said. Sony shut down the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services April 20 because of possible data theft by hackers.

The maker of PS consoles had planned to restart partial operations within a week after boosting the level of security system, the company said May 1."

107w ago - Today Sony's Senior Director of Corporate Communications & Social Media Patrick Seybold has posted an update on their response to the U.S. House of Representatives via the PlayStation Blog.

To quote: Today, the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing in Washington, DC on The Threat of Data Theft to American Consumers.

Kazuo Hirai, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sony Computer Entertainment America, submitted written answers to questions posed by the subcommittee about the large-scale, criminal cyber-attack we have experienced. We wanted to share those answers with you (click here).

In summary, we told the subcommittee that in dealing with this cyber attack we followed four key principles:

1. Act with care and caution.
2. Provide relevant information to the public when it has been verified.
3. Take responsibility for our obligations to our customers.
4. Work with law enforcement authorities.

We also informed the subcommittee of the following:

• Sony has been the victim of a very carefully planned, very professional, highly sophisticated criminal...