Hackers may have been able to access “a massive amount of sensitive information” involving communications companies — including “more than 4 million records” from customers of Charter’s Time Warner Communications — Kromtech Security Center reports today.
NEW YORK (AP) — ABC News said three of its Twitter accounts were hacked Thursday morning, sending out profanity-filled tweets to its millions of followers. The tweets have since been […]
Hackers thought to be working for Russian intelligence have carried out a series of cyber breaches targeting reporters at the New York Times and other US news organizations, according to U.S. officials briefed on the matter.
Computer hackers’ efforts to penetrate and disrupt media and entertainment networks were up sharply in the quarter that ended June 30, major Internet security company Verisign reported. Media and entertainment companies represented 20% of Verisign’s work in the quarter to thwart or minimize attacks such as the 2014 assault on Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Exclusives
Sony will delay its fourth quarter earnings report as repairs remain ongoing to its hacked computer system. The systems, including accounting and financial applications, won’t be restored until early next month, underscoring the damage suffered by Sony Pictures after its film The Interview was targeted.
WBOC Website, Twitter Account Hacked
The Salisbury, Md., CBS affiliate was hacked by an outside group, posting pro-extreme Islamic messages on the website. “We have managed to take back control of WBOC.com,” station manager Craig Jahelka said. “We have contacted Twitter to let them know that our account has been hacked, but they haven’t done anything yet.” The postings to the site were from a group calling itself the CyberCaliphate.
CEO Kazuo Hirai, who hasn’t spoken about publicly about the hack before, opened a press event at the International CES trade show in Las Vegas by saying he “would be remiss” if he didn’t mention the controversy over the Sony comedy, The Interview. Hirai did not offer any new information about the hack, but said Monday evening that freedom of speech and expression are “very important” to Sony and its entertainment business.
Federal investigators said the provocative notion of revenge sabotage doesn’t have a basis in fact. After FBI agents were briefed Monday, they concluded the security company offering the alternate theory did not have an accurate understanding of all the evidence, a U.S. official familiar with the matter said.
Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton said Tuesday that Seth Rogen’s North Korea farce “will be in a number of theaters on Christmas Day.” He said Sony also is continuing its efforts to release the film on more platforms and in more theaters. “We have never given up on releasing The Interview,” said Lynton. “While we hope this is only the first step of the film’s release, we are proud to make it available to the public and to have stood up to those who attempted to suppress free speech.”
The Sony hacking attack continues to deliver more dramatic plotlines than any fictional movie, but meanwhile the movie studio must move forward and tackle the next steps in minimizing the mess. Will Sony eventually release “The Interview” in some form? In theaters, on DVD or online? And what recourse does the company have against the North Korean-linked hackers?
The hacking attack on Sony Pictures may have been a practice run for North Korea’s elite cyber-army in a long-term goal of being able to cripple telecoms and energy grids in rival nations, defectors from the isolated state say.
The cancellation, announced Wednesday, was a startling blow to the Hollywood studio that has been shaken by hacker leaks and intimidations over the last several weeks by an anonymous group calling itself Guardians of Peace. A U.S. official said Wednesday that federal investigators have now connected the Sony hacking to North Korea and are expected to make an announcement in the near future.
Sony Pictures Entertainment is warning news organizations not to publish details of company files leaked by hackers in one of the largest digital breaches ever against an American company.
The internal emails leaked in a massive computer hack at Sony Pictures have captivated an entertainment industry that’s all ears for scandalous revelations. Beyond the dirty laundry, however, the release of inside information is expected to force significant changes in the way freewheeling Hollywood does business.
