Ubisoft hacked; users' e-mails and passwords exposed

Anyone that has an account with video game developer Ubisoft is being advised to change their password immediately. The game maker announced Tuesday that its user account database was breached by hackers who gained access to user names, e-mail addresses, and encrypted passwords.

"We recently discovered that one of our Web sites was exploited to gain unauthorized access to some of our online systems," Ubisoft wrote in a statement. "During this process, we learned that data had been illegally accessed from our account database."

The game maker emphasized that the company doesn't store personal payment information, so no credit or debit card information was stolen. However, since passwords could have been stolen, the company is recommending that users change their passwords on any other Web site where they used the same or a similar password.

Ubisoft makes hit video games such as Assassin's Creed, Just Dance, and Tom Clancy's The Division. The company won't specify how hackers breached its system; it only said, "credentials were stolen and used to illegally access our online network."

This isn't the first time that Ubisoft's network has been hacked. In 2010, a consortium of hackers known as Skid Row claimed responsibility for breaching Ubisoft's Web site in protest over a policy that required gamers to have a constant Internet connection to play their games. This hack didn't affect users' personal information, however, but instead removed the company's digital rights management technology for PC games.

As far as the most recent hack, Ubisoft said it is investigating the breach with the "relevant authorities" and working on restoring their systems.

"Ubisoft's security teams are exploring all available means to expand and strengthen our security measures in order to better protect our customers," the game maker wrote. "Unfortunately, no company or organization is completely immune to these kinds of criminal attacks."