Sony Investigates PSN Security Issue Involving Child Accounts

Sony is investigating reports of unauthorized child accounts appearing in PlayStation Network family groups, raising concerns about account security and potential PlayStation Store spending.

The complaints emerged in October 2026, with affected PlayStation users reporting unfamiliar family members added without their permission. Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun reported on October 26 that Sony was investigating the incidents.

Some users claim the accounts appeared despite password protection, two-step verification, or passkeys being enabled. However, the method used to add these accounts has not been independently established, and a confirmed authentication bypass has not been publicly demonstrated.

The problem is particularly difficult to resolve because PlayStation's family system restricts how child accounts can be managed.

According to Sony's official PlayStation Family support documentation, family managers cannot remove child members through the normal account management controls.

Child accounts can also make PlayStation Store purchases using funds from the family manager's wallet, depending on their assigned spending limits. Those limits default to zero, and there is no verified evidence that the reported incidents exposed saved payment card details.

Affected users have additionally raised concerns about unauthorized account changes, although the extent of any personal information exposure remains unclear.

PlayStation owners can review their family groups through Account Management or the Family Management settings on PS5.

Anyone discovering an unfamiliar child account should document the activity, check transaction history, review spending limits, secure their account credentials, and contact PlayStation Support.

Sony has not publicly identified the underlying cause or announced a general security fix.