Year – 2014

Estimated Economic Losses – US$35 Million, excluding broader business disruption and reputational damage.

Systems Affected – Sony Pictures Entertainment’s corporate network, employee workstations, email systems, internal servers, and data infrastructure.

Type of Attack – Destructive Malware Attack | Corporate Data Breach

Suspected Group / Organization – Guardians of Peace (GOP), attributed by the U.S. government to North Korea.

Detailed Working
Attackers infiltrated Sony Pictures’ corporate network, gained access to internal systems, and stole large volumes of confidential data. Destructive malware was deployed to erase data and disable computer systems, while stolen emails, employee information, business documents, and unreleased film-related data were subsequently leaked online.

Forensic Investigations
Investigators analyzed malware samples, compromised systems, network activity, and digital evidence to reconstruct the attack. The investigation identified data theft, destructive malware deployment, compromised network infrastructure, and technical indicators that contributed to the U.S. government’s attribution of the attack to North Korea.