Probe Finds N. Korea Behind Mar. 20 Cyber Attack
Anchor: The South Korean government has concluded that North Korea was behind last month’s massive cyber attack that brought down the networks of major South Korean media and banks. Our Bae Joo-yon has more.
Report: A joint civilian-government-military probe team announced on Wednesday that it was North Korea’s Reconnaissance General Bureau that orchestrated the cyber attacks against South Korean institutions last month. Broadcasters KBS, MBC and cable news channel YTN as well as Shinhan, Jeju and Nonghyup banks were paralyzed by the attacks.
During a news briefing at the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning, the investigation team said it concluded North Korea was behind the attack after analyzing 76 traits of malicious code and computer access records collected from the affected networks. It noted of the 76 codes discovered, 30 were reused from previous attacks.
The latest probe was also based on materials that the National Intelligence Service and military had accumulated on North Korea’s cyber attacks against the South in the past.
The team found that at least six personal computers located within North Korea were utilized in planting malicious codes in South Korean financial institutes through one-thousand-590 connections since June 28th of last year. Those computers also stole information from the personal computers of South Korean financial institutions.
So far, the investigation team has traced 25 access routes at home and 24 abroad. It said that 18 of the routes in South Korea and four overseas are the same IP address the North previously used in cyber attacks against the South since 2009.
Investigators said the hackers infiltrated the personal computers or servers of the targeted South Korean institutions at least eight months beforehand and found weak spots in their computer networks.
The government will convene on Thursday a national cyber safety strategy meeting chaired by the head of the National Intelligence Service. The meeting will see the attendnace of officials of 15 government agencie and will discuss ways to prevent the recurrence of such attacks.
Seoul to Pressure, Persuade North through Global Cooperation
Anchor: Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se announced the government's plan to restrain North Korea’s tension mongering through cooperation with members of the six-party talks, the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). He also said the North Korea issue will be discussed when he meets U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Seoul Friday.
Our Kim Soyon reports.
Report: Seoul's Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said South Korea will seek to suppress North Korea’s tension building tactics and additional provocations through "pressure and persuasion" in cooperation with the international community.
Speaking at the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee on Wednesday, the minister said the government maintains a consistent and unified response posture against the North’s provocations and threats.
He said Seoul will exert joint pressure on Pyongyang together with the United Nations and key members of the international community including the EU, ASEAN and parties to the six-nation dialogue.
He noted that the government is also continuing efforts to persuade Pyongyang through cooperation with Beijing and Moscow.
With regards to Washington, Yun said high-level collaborative channels have all been activated and that strategies on North Korea will be discussed in depth when he meets U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Seoul on Friday. The meeting is expected to pave the way and fine tune Seoul and Washington’s stances on North Korea and other pending issues before the South Korea-U.S. summit to be held in the U.S. next month.
Before meeting Yun, Kerry is expected to make a courtesy visit to President Park Geun-hye. Kerry will also meet with Defense Minster Kim Kwan-jin during his trip.
