PlayStation now requires a ‘one-time online check’ to confirm you own a game
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Follow Follow See All News PlayStation now requires a ‘one-time online check’ to confirm you own a game Sony has refuted rumors that gamers would be required to go online every 30 days. Sony has refuted rumors that gamers would be required to go online every 30 days. by Jess Weatherbed Close Jess Weatherbed News Reporter Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Technical Details
Follow Follow See All by Jess Weatherbed Apr 30, 2026, 9:18 AM UTC Link Share Gift Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Jess Weatherbed Close Jess Weatherbed Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Follow Follow See All by Jess Weatherbed is a news writer focused on creative industries, computing, and internet culture. Jess started her career at TechRadar, covering news and hardware reviews.
Sony has finally stepped in to clear up the growing confusion around a new DRM (Digital Rights Management) system on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 consoles. Users reported that the system’s latest updates seemingly introduced a requirement to go online once every 30 days to validate game licenses, but Sony now says this is false. In a statement to GameSpot , a Sony Interactive Entertainment spokesperson said that “a one-time online check is required to confirm the game’s license, after which no further check-ins are required.
” The DRM rumors had sparked concerns that gamers who don’t sign in every month would lose access to their games by allowing the licenses to lapse, but Sony says that “players can continue to access and play their purchased games as usual. ” It’s a welcome rebuttal that should give PlayStation gamers some peace of mind, however it comes several days after content creator Modded Hardware first reported the DRM concerns on April 24th. Subsequent screenshots shared online appeared to show a 30-day timer on PlayStation Store purchases made after March 2026.
Industry Implications
With no official response from Sony to explain the changes at the time, users speculated that the new DRM update required monthly online connectivity, perhaps to combat refund scams that use jailbroken PS4 consoles to extract digital game licenses. The introduction of a one-time verification could still be aimed at tackling such a vulnerability, though Sony hasn’t confirmed its reasoning behind the changes. Sony’s slow response has reheated concerns about ownership rights for digital games, however.
The messy situation mirrors similar discord from 2013 around Microsoft requiring Xbox One owners to be subjected to online checks every 24 hours .
This advance offers important signals about the future of the sector, and the tech world is watching closely.
