FBI believes North Korea was behind Sony hacks

FBI believes North Korea was behind Sony hacks

Courtesy of Sony

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has stated that they believe that the North Korean government was behind the cyber attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment in a press conference today.

Late last November, Sony saw the first signs of the hack when warning messages were flashed on the company’s computer screens. Following the initial attack, the hackers made several internal emails, personal documents and salary information public. Mid-December, hackers sent a threat against  showing “The Interview”, a satirical film produced by Sony about the fictional assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

At the Fordham Law School cybersecurity conference, James B. Comey, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said he has “high confidence” in the FBI’s attribution of the attack. The most important piece of evidence so far has been a few Internet Protocol (IP) addresses traced directly to North Korea. Though the FBI has not yet determined how the hackers breached the Sony network and security system, they have been simulating the attack in order to understand how it may have occurred.

Comey’s remarks have raised a flurry of questions, with many people demanding for more evidence in order to prove North Korea’s involvement. A petition on the White House websites calling for the government to “Reveal Its Evidence Against North Korea In The Sony Hacking Incident” currently has a 105 signatures. The petition must have 100,000 signatures by February 3, 2015 to be considered by government officials.

Though doubt still remains on the evidence, the Obama administration levied new sanctions against the North Korean government early last week. The U.S. Treasury Department has barred three entities and 10 individuals associated with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea from using the U.S. financial system. An executive order has given the department authority to freeze U.S.-linked assets of any North Korean.

Comey has asked private companies to work with law enforcement officials to aid in uncovering more evidence for these attacks.