A hacker group calling itself #GOP is blackmailing Sony Pictures, we're told. We're also told the company's entire network is on lockdown.
But what's with the childish skull defacement and tone-deaf hashtag? In IT Blogwatch, bloggers sound slightly suspicious about corporate fact-manipulation.
Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment.
Ohaio gosaimasu, Anousha Sakoui, who spoke to "a person with knowledge of the matter":
Sony Corp’s network was hacked in what may be a blackmail attempt. [It] is under investigation, said the person, who wasn’t authorized to speak publicly.
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A picture of a skull appeared on company computer screens...accompanied by a message that read Sony had been hacked by #GOP and that private data would be released...if its undisclosed demands weren’t met. [It] is being linked to a group called “Guardians of Peace.” MORE
Mike Fleming Jr. broke the story:
This Sony thing is serious. Things have come to a standstill...after the computers...around the world were infiltrated by a hacker. ... It has basically brought the whole global corporation to an electronic standstill.
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There is no reason given why this is happening, and no specific demands [but] there are no corporate emails going in and out and you can’t use your computer. ... “We are down, completely paralyzed,” said a source. MORE
Thus adds Darren Pauli:
[It's] seen hackers supposedly steal reams of internal data and splash defacements across staff computers. ... The group also hacked dozens of Twitter accounts linked to movies such as Stomp The Yard, Soul Surfer, and Starship Troopers.
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Users have overloaded servers hosting the alleged 200MB-plus breach caches grinding many to a crawl. [They] searched the alleged Sony data caches...and reportedly found private PuTTY keys, passwords for Oracle and SQL databases, source code and production schedules and hardware inventory lists. MORE
Gabrielle Bluestone is Unit 386D ENI in Violet Club: [You're fired -Ed.]
Employees—reportedly across the country—were instructed to stop using their computers, corporate email accounts, and cell phone wifi access.
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#GOP also released a "large ZIP file containing two massive lists detailing the extent of the doxxing," full of passwords taken from Sony Pictures' finance department. MORE
Meanwhile, John Duggan and Michael Ryan Wood conspire on this theory:
That screen shot logo looks like something an elite hacker would make on a Law and order SVU episode circa 2002. ... It’s like something my mother would imagine a hacker would make.
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What if this is just really advertising for a new Sony movie about hackers?. MORE
Update: Adam Samson clarifies that we're talking about Sony Pictures Entertainment:
The firm, which is a unit of Japanese tech and media giant Sony, didn’t immediately respond to a...request for comment.
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Sony’s American depository receipts rose 1.8% in regular trading in New York, and fell roughly 0.2% in extended trade. MORE
You have been reading IT Blogwatch by Richi Jennings, who curates the best bloggy bits, finest forums, and weirdest websites… so you don't have to. Catch the key commentary from around the Web every morning. Hatemail may be directed to @RiCHi or itbw@richi.uk. Opinions expressed may not represent those of Computerworld. Ask your doctor before reading. Your mileage may vary. E&OE.
