Reports over the weekend have surfaced on Reddit indicating that a malicious PSN message is causing PS4 systems to crash, requiring factory resets to fix the issue. The message, once received, causes the PS4 to shut down and enter a boot loop, making the console unusable.
The reddit thread includes various solutions to resolve the issue, including:
- Deleting the message using the PS Messaging App on mobile
- Rebuilding the database from the PS4 recovery menu
- Factory resetting the PS4 (via recovery menu), resulting is data loss on the PS4 (deleting all games and data on the console)
Sony have yet to comment on the issue, but you can prevent the issue affecting you by changing your privacy settings to prevent messages from being sent to you.
You can change your privacy settings by going to [Settings] > [Account Management] > [Privacy Settings] > [Personal Info] > [Messages]. Changing the privacy setting to “Friends Only” or “No One” will help prevent unknown users from sending you messages.
Source: Reddit