|
 "There is no attribution to North Korea at this point," Joe
Demarest, assistant director with the Federal Bureau of
Investigation's cyber division, said while speaking on a panel at a
cybersecurity conference sponsored by Bloomberg Government.
The comment casts at least some doubt on the widely held belief that
North Korea has definitely been determined to be the culprit in the
massive attack on the Hollywood studio, leaving room for other
theories to emerge.
Cybersecurity researchers who have analyzed the malicious software
used in the attack say that technical indicators suggest North
Korean hackers launched the attack. People close to separate
investigations being conducted by Sony and the government have told
Reuters that North Korea is a principal suspect, yet a North Korean
diplomat has denied that his nation is involved.
Demarest also said that there has been no confirmation of government
involvement to date, though he did not elaborate.
FBI spokesman Joshua Campbell said the agency is continuing its
search for the attackers but had no additional information.
[to top of second column] |
Demarest's brief comments were the first public remarks by a senior
FBI official about its investigation into the unprecedented attack
on U.S. soil. Hackers stole vast quantities of data, then used
malicious software to wipe data on computers, shutting down much of
the Sony Corp unit's network for more than a week.
FBI representatives plan to meet with Sony employees on Wednesday to
provide them training in cybersecurity practices, Campbell said.
"As part of our commitment to helping private industry protect
against the threat posed by malicious cyber criminals, the FBI
routinely provides briefings on cyber security awareness," he said.
(Reporting by Jim Finkle; Editing by Alden Bentley and Jonathan
Oatis)
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