Everyone wants to blame someone. In recent cases, everyone is pointing the finger at the political scapegoat, North Korea, for the attack on Sony. But as investigations mount up and evidence is examined by those outside the finger pointing circles, the reality is that there isn’t enough evidence to substantiate a claim yet. The political convenience of blame remains; yet the possibility and plausibility of an inside hack job is a high contender.
The FBI so far are siting only a few points now released to the public. One of the main points they suggest that links North Korea to the attacks is the elusive and indefinable IP address. Anyone with a scrape of IT intelligence will tell you how unreliable an IP address is without copious amounts of other evidence, to use this as a reason to connect anyone with cyber terrorism of any standard. The IP address can be misrepresented on oh-so many levels, and with someone of the ability to pull off the Sony stunt, they have the means in this department. An IP address is not always a permanent and fixed source.
Though there is not enough evidence to hang North Korea by the rope, there isn’t enough to say they aren’t involved. What the circumstances surrounding the entire scenario suggest is that the FBI also need to consider options closer to home. But as Zetter (2014) points out in an article well worth the read, that to point the finger of blame at any one society/person/group is ‘difficult, if not impossible.’ [1]
Her initial paragraph on the matter of attribution sums it up: ‘First off, we have to say that attribution in breaches is difficult. Assertions about who is behind any attack should be treated with a hefty dose of skepticism. Skilled hackers use proxy machines and false IP addresses to cover their tracks or plant false clues inside their malware to throw investigators off their trail. When hackers are identified and apprehended, it’s generally because they’ve made mistakes or because a cohort got arrested and turned informant.’
What needs to be examined is the initial message sent to Sony. There was no mention of North Korea; but attempts to be a simple message to Sony about their greed based in political motivations and media. Maybe someone is simply over-tired of the perpetual propaganda wheel spinning.
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[1] Zetta, K. (2014, 17 December) The Evidence that North Korea Hacked Sony is Flimsy http://www.wired.com/2014/12/evidence-of-north-korea-hack-is-thin/ (Retrieved 2014, 29 December)
A private cyber security company already found out who did it. 6 people one of which was an employee at sony.