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U.S. imposes sanctions on N. Korea following attack on Sony U.S. imposes sanctions on N. Korea following attack on Sony
(about 1 hour later)
The Obama administration imposed new sanctions on North Korea on Friday, the first known U.S. response since authorities concluded the repressive government was behind the cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment.The Obama administration imposed new sanctions on North Korea on Friday, the first known U.S. response since authorities concluded the repressive government was behind the cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment.
President Obama, while vacationing in Hawaii, signed an executive order authorizing the sanctions. U.S. officials said the measures were a response to North Korea’s “ongoing provocative, destabilizing, and repressive actions and policies,” including the attack on Sony. President Obama, while vacationing in Hawaii, signed an executive order authorizing the sanctions. U.S. officials described them as a response to North Korea’s “ongoing provocative, destabilizing, and repressive actions and policies,” including the attack on Sony.
Under the new order, the Treasury Department imposed financial measures on 10 North Korean officials and three government agencies. The targets include the country’s main intelligence agency, believed to have orchestrated major cyber operations, as well as agencies responsible for weapons deals and military research and development. “This attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment clearly crossed a threshold for us,” said one official, citing concerns about the growing sophistication and danger posed by cybersecurity threats in general.
The newly sanctioned officials include those operating out of Namibia, Iran, Syria and China. “You should see this as part of a broader effort to raise the baseline level of cybersecurity across the country, and tackle these threats head-on.”
At least some of the entities targeted Friday have been sanctioned previously. North Korea is already one of the most heavily sanctioned countries in the world. Under the new order, the Treasury Department imposed financial measures on 10 North Korean officials and three government agencies. The targets include the Reconnaissance General Bureau, the country’s main intelligence agency, believed to have orchestrated major cyber operations. The other targets are the Korea Mining Development Trading Corporation, which is North Korean’s main arms dealer, and the Korean Tangun Trading Corp., which is responsible for North Korea’s defense research and development.
None of the individuals sanctioned — including those operating out of Russia, Iran, Syria, China and Namibia — is believed to be directly involved in the Sony hack, officials said. They earned their place on the new list as employees of the North Korean government or representatives of the Workers Party of Korea.
Unlike the individuals, the agencies and corporations targeted Friday have all been sanctioned previously. North Korea is already one of the most heavily sanctioned countries in the world.
It is not clear whether any of the individuals have any assets in the United States that would be impacted by the sanctions. But administration officials said they expect financial institutions in other countries to take notice, and decline to do business with them.
Obama pledged two weeks ago to respond “proportionally” to the intrusion into Sony’s network — an attack that not only exposed embarrassing corporate e-mails but wiped out computer data. Some lawmakers have called on the administration to redesignate North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism — a measure Obama has said he would consider.Obama pledged two weeks ago to respond “proportionally” to the intrusion into Sony’s network — an attack that not only exposed embarrassing corporate e-mails but wiped out computer data. Some lawmakers have called on the administration to redesignate North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism — a measure Obama has said he would consider.
In a statement Friday, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said the new sanctions aim to hold North Korea responsible for “destructive and destabilizing conduct.”In a statement Friday, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said the new sanctions aim to hold North Korea responsible for “destructive and destabilizing conduct.”
“Even as the FBI continues its investigation into the cyber-attack against Sony Pictures Entertainment, these steps underscore that we will employ a broad set of tools to defend U.S. businesses and citizens, and to respond to attempts to undermine our values or threaten the national security of the United States,” he said.“Even as the FBI continues its investigation into the cyber-attack against Sony Pictures Entertainment, these steps underscore that we will employ a broad set of tools to defend U.S. businesses and citizens, and to respond to attempts to undermine our values or threaten the national security of the United States,” he said.
North Korea has denied it carried out the attack against Sony, which became public on Nov. 24, and some cybersecurity experts have questioned the U.S. assertion that the Stalinist government was involved. Since the earliest news reports about possible North Korean responsibility for the Sony hack in November, there has been skepticism among independent security researchers who say that it is notoriously difficult to determine the origins of cyberattacks and that sophisticated hackers can hide their footsteps or otherwise fool investigators.
Last month, security researchers at California-based Norse Corp. said their own probe suggested the attack could have been linked to a disgruntled former Sony employee. The FBI has rebutted such assertions, saying in a recent statement that there is “no credible information to indicate that any other individual is responsible for this cyber incident.” Those doubts have not receded since the FBI officially laid blame on the reclusive nation on Dec. 19, the same day that Obama threatened to retaliate for the attack and chastised Sony for canceling the planned release of the movie, “The Interview.” The comedy’s plot is built around the assassination of North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un.
“We cannot have a society in which some dictator someplace can start imposing censorship here in the United States,” Obama said.
An independent cybersecurity research group, Norse Corp., this week issued a report challenging the North Korean connection and asserting that the attack may have been the work of a disgruntled former Sony employee, stoking public doubts. The FBI has repeatedly disputed such claims, saying there is no doubt that North Korea is responsible.
Administration officials on Friday insisted they remain confident that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is behind the hack. They said they have access to intelligence that skeptics do not, some of it gathered by the nation’s top spy analysts.
“We stand firmly behind our call that the DPRK is behind the attacks on Sony,” a senior administration official said Friday.
Officials said they believed the new measures marked the first time the United States has imposed sanctions related to a cyberattack, though some sanctions in the past have been connected to the use of the Internet in human rights abuses.