Sony Pictures targeted in reported hack attack

Sony Pictures Entertainment has reportedly been targeted in an attack where hackers are threatening to disclose "secrets," entertainment and tech sites reported Tuesday (PHL time).

 

A report on entertainment site Deadline.com said Sony Pictures Entertainment has warned employees companywide against connecting to corporate networks or accessing email.

 

The attack has forced Sony's computers in Los Angeles to a standstill while the company handles the breach, the report said.

 

"We are down, completely paralyzed,” it quoted a source as saying.

 

A separate report on tech site The Verge quoted a Sony statement as saying, "We are investigating an IT matter."

 

“We are investigating an I.T. matter,” SPE spokeswoman Jean Guerin said in an emailed statement. The hack apparently is not affecting other divisions of Sony Corp., sources said.

 

Meanwhile, Variety.com quoted a source at Sony Pictures as saying the company has told employees the situation may take up to three weeks to resolve.

 

It quoted its source as saying a photo appeared on company computers Monday morning with an image of a skeleton and a message “Hacked by #GOP.”

 

“Warning: We’ve already warned you, and this is just the beginning… We have obtained all your internal data including secrets and top secrets,” it cited the message as saying.

 

Last August, hackers claimed having taken down Sony’s PlayStation Network with a denial-of-service attack. — Joel Locsin/RSJ, GMA News