A PlayStation 4 message can break your console: How to prevent it, or fix it

Ben Gilbert / Business Insider

• PlayStation 4 owners encountered a system vulnerability over
  the weekend, where a message with a particular string of
  characters could brick your game console, rendering it useless.
• Many PlayStation 4 owners had to “factory reset” their
  consoles, which caused them to lose any data not stored in the
  cloud or elsewhere.
• Sony said it is aware of the issue and will deploy a fix in a
  future software update.
• In the meantime, there are steps you can take to prevent this
  issue from happening to your PlayStation 4. And if you’ve already
  been affected, you can try a potential workaround that seems to
  preserve all of your games and save data.

Over the weekend, PlayStation 4 owners discovered an issue where
a certain message with a particular set of symbols, if sent to
your game console, could brick the system (Redditors captured what the viral
messages look like, in case you’re interested).

“Rainbow Six: Siege” and “Destiny 2” players encountered this
issue when their opponents sent these messages during competitive
multiplayer matches, forcing them to lose their games, as well as
their consoles.

Sony released the following statement in response to the bug:
“We are aware of the situation and are planning a system
software update to resolve this problem.”

If this damaging message is sent to your PlayStation 4, you may
be unable to use the console unless you perform a fix. Many
people have resorted to factory resets, where they lose any data
that’s not stored in the cloud or elsewhere, but Sony confirms
there is a way to fix your PlayStation 4 without losing any of
your save data. 

How to prevent the issue from happening to you

There’s an easy way to make sure this bug doesn’t reach your
PlayStation 4: all you need to do is set your messages to
“private.”

Just visit Settings > Account
Management > Privacy
Settings > Personal Info and
Messaging, and set Messages to either “Friends” or “No
One.”

Until Sony releases a software fix,
this is the best way to ensure you don’t have to deal with a
major headache.

How to fix your PlayStation 4 if
you received the message

Thankfully, some Reddit users found there’s a relatively simple
way to fix your PlayStation 4 if you received the viral message,
without needing to perform a factory reset. Sony’s
PlayStation Spain account confirmed on Twitter that this will
indeed help resolve the issue.

First, you’ll need to delete the message. The best way to do that
is through the PS Messages app for your phone, or visit
my.playstation.com to view and delete the message. You want to
click the option “Leave Group” here.

Once you’ve successfully deleted the message, you need to reboot
your PlayStation 4 in safe mode. Power down your console, then
hold the power button for seven seconds. You should hear a beep,
and see the safe mode menu.

Finally, in safe mode, choose the “Rebuild Database.” If you did
it right, your PlayStation 4 should restart correctly and you
should have access to all of your games and save data.