Hacked Sony PlayStation Portal can run emulated PSP games

By Dwaipayan Roy

Feb 20, 2024

05:56 pm

What's the story

Two Google engineers have successfully hacked Sony's PlayStation Portal, a handheld device originally designed for streaming games from a PS5 console. Andy Nguyen, a Cloud Vulnerability Researcher at Google, revealed in a post that they managed to run the emulator natively on the device. This means users can now play games like Grand Theft Auto's PSP version without Wi-Fi streaming.

Twitter Post

Take a look at Nguyen's announcement

After more than a month of hard work, PPSSPP is running natively on PlayStation Portal. Yes, we hacked it. With help from xyz and @ZetaTwo pic.twitter.com/AXuRROo6Ip
— Andy Nguyen (@theflow0) February 19, 2024

Details

Software-based exploit requires no hardware modifications

The exploit is "all software-based," according to Nguyen, which means no hardware modifications are needed. So far, only a picture of Grand Theft Auto 3 running on the PlayStation Portal has been shared, but Nguyen plans to release videos showcasing the exploit soon. Nguyen collaborated with fellow Google security engineer Calle Svensson on this project.

What Next?

Google engineers' history with PlayStation exploits

Andy Nguyen, also known as TheFlow, has a track record of uncovering multiple PS4 and PS5 exploits. He is set to reveal a new PS4 exploit this May. The successful hacking of the PlayStation Portal by Nguyen and Svensson demonstrates their skill in finding vulnerabilities in Sony's gaming systems. This development could lead to more discoveries and advancements in the gaming community.