FBI Bulletin States Sony Hackers are Targeting Media Outlets
Source: Paul Lilly
The hacking organization that took credit for infiltrating Sony Pictures Entertainment and stealing 10TB worth of data has also threatened at least one news media organization, according to an FBI bulletin that's making the rounds in cyberspace. Known as the Guardians of Peace, or GOP, the group of hackers proved a major headache for Sony, who's antics appear to have been motivated by The Interview, a comedy involving an assassination attempt against North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
The bulletin, which is dated December 24, 2014 and is labeled as unclassified, said the threat against the unnamed news organization by the GOP "may extend to other such organizations in the near future." It was first picked up the The Intercept and has since been posted online (PDF).
In the bulletin, the FBI refers to Sony as "USPER1" and the unnamed "news media organization" as "USPER2," adding that the GOP posted Pastebin messages that specifically taunted the FBI and USPER2 for the quality of their investigations and implied an additional threat. According to the bulletin, no specific consequence was mentioned in the post.
News outlet Fox News said it was able to confirm with the FBI that the bulletin is real, however it's being stressed that it doesn't mean there's any specific evidence of a threat to a news organization.
"As part of our ongoing public-private partnerships, the FBI and DHS routinely share information with the private sector and law enforcement community," the official said. "The FBI and DHS are not aware of any specific credible information indicating a threat to entertainment or news organizations, however, out of an abundance of caution, we will continue to disseminate relevant information observed during the course of our investigations."
The FBI in December blamed North Korea for the cyberattack against Sony, which may have been aided by an insider. North Korea maintains it had nothing to do with the incident.
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