UK politician's data protection concerns following PSNgate

Another British politician has spoken out about the PlayStation Network dramas, calling on the games industry to prioritise data protection.

EuroGamer reports that Ed Vaizey, the Minister for Culture, Communciations and Creative Industries in the UK, has described the recent network hack as a "huge issue" - and one that could potentially see the company fined up to half a million pounds.

Sony has suffered accusations that it did not properly protect PSN user information.

Sony is facing accusations that it did not properly protect user information relating to the PlayStation Network, something that has prompted the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) to get in contact with the hardware giant. The independent watchdog now faces the job of figuring out whether or not the company was in breach of the Data Protection Act.

Vaizey says "Sony didn't want to be hacked or have people's data stolen, but clearly as more and more companies move their products online and more and more people have to give their personal details in order to access those products, data protection and security is going to have to be one of their number one priorities."

He says that the British government will not interfere with the ICO's investigation, even though his department is interested in the outcome.