North Korea Says Theyre Being Framed for Sony Cyber Attack

UPDATE: Guardians of Peace, the hacker group that previously took credit for the Sony cyber attack, mocked the FBI and their investigationthat determined North Korea was centrally involvedin the Sony hack.The result of investigation by FBI is so excellent that you might have seen what we were doing with your own eye, the Guardians of Peace wrote in a statement posted on the file-sharing site Pastebin (via CNN). We congratulate you success. FBI is the BEST in the world. You will find the gift for FBI at the following address. Enjoy. The hackers also included a link toa YouTube video titled you are an idiot!

The FBI and President Barack Obama both confirmed Friday that the cyber attack on Sony Pictures that forced the cancellation of The Interview by threatening acts of terrorism against movie theatres was perpetrated by North Korea. However, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) has once again denied that theyre involved in the Sony hack, with the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) issuing a statement that says the secretive nation is being framed.

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Whoever is going to frame our country for a crime should present concrete evidence, KCNA said(via CNN). Americas childish investigation result and its attempt to frame us for this crime shows their hostile tendency towards us. North Korea also said that they would never attack innocent moviegoers, as the hackers promised. The retaliation will target the ones who are responsible and the originators of the insults, the KCNA reported.

North Korea extendsa rare olive branch by offering their services in a mutual investigation of the cyber attack. However, if America refuses our proposal of mutual investigation, continues to link us to this case, and talk about actions in response, [America]will be met with serious consequences, the KCNA warned.

As The Interview moved toward its December 25th theatrical release date, North Korea called the comedy an evil act of provocationand threatened stern punishment against its star and co-director Seth Rogen. The crippling Sony Pictures hack followed soon after, with the studios upcoming films and confidential, industry-shaking emails leaked out by a group called the Guardians of Peace.

When the Sony hack first occurredand some evidence pointed at North Korea playing a role, the DPRK issued a statement denying involvementand saying South Korea floated the story about the norths involvement. While North Korea didnt take responsibility for the hack, they applauded Guardians of Peace, saying the Sony takedown was a righteous deed of the supporters and sympathizers.

In President Barack Obamas year-end address, he called Sonys decision to pull The Interviewa mistake and promised a proportional and appropriate response to North Koreas actions, but wouldnt elaborate on what the U.S. had planned. The Daily Beast suggeststhat the United States could pressure China North Koreas most important trade partner to place economic sanctions on Kim Jong Uns country as retribution for the Sony hack.