Sony attacks launched inside North Korea, routed via Taiwan: Report
After confirming that the cyber attacks against Sony are linked to North Korea, US officials are now reportedly saying that the attacks originated from inside North Korea and were routed via Taiwan.
NBC Nightly News tweeted: "U.S. officials now believe Sony hack attack was launched inside North Korea & routed through servers in Taiwan."
(Credit: Screenshot by Aimee Chanthadavong/ZDNet)
The attack on Sony's internal systems saw thousands of files leaked online, including the social security numbers of Hollywood celebrities, Outlook mailboxes, passwords, and copies of passports belonging to both actors and crews working on film projects.
The attack also made unreleased Sony films available on illegal file-sharing websites.
It comes after Sony was planning to release the controversial movie, The Interview, in cinemas later this month.
The film, starring Seth Rogan and James Franco, is a story about two journalists who are recruited by the CIA to assassinate the leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un.
The Guardians of Peace, the group which claimed responsibility for infiltrating Sony's servers, had threatened that it was going to carry out 9/11-style attacks on cinema-goers if Sony did not pull the plug on The Interview.
Despite ongoing investigations being carried out by the FBI, Sony announced on Thursday that it was pulling the plug on the film, cancelling all plans for its release.
A Sony spokesperson said the company has "no further release plans for the film", on demand, DVD, cinema, or otherwise.
However, North Korea has denied any involvement in the attacks.
"We do not know where in America the Sony Pictures is situated and for what wrongdoings it became the target of the attack, nor [do] we feel the need to know about it," North Korea's top military body, the National Defence Commission, told the state-run KCNA news agency at the time.
