North Korea blamed for internet attack on Sony Pictures: better cyber armour now a must

But he or she is quite probably looking for a new job after the film – a comedy about CIA plot to hire two journalists to kill North Korean leader Kim Jong-un – led to the company being subject to a debilitating and embarrassing cyber attack. The North Korean government – which had threatened "merciless" action against the United States if the film was released – is believed to have been behind the hack, but no-one is quite certain. Nor is anyone clear as to who engineered this week's internet blackout in North Korea. The incidents have, however, demonstrated yet again how vulnerable governments, corporations, and for that matter individuals, are to cyber-terrorism and cyber-crime.

Responsibility for the attack on Sony Pictures on November 24 was claimed by a group calling itself the Guardians of Peace. As well as disabling the company's computer system, the hackers stole 10 years' worth of emails (the most embarrassing of which were published on social media), and large amounts of information about employees, including their salaries. On December 16, the Guardians of Peace threatened to mount some unspecified terrorist action against the film's New York premiere, and on that basis, Sony decided not to release the film. The decision drew immediate condemnation, with United States President Barack Obama commenting that producers should not have been intimidated by the hacking.

Less diplomatic in anguage was Jimmy Kimmel, a US talk show host. He denounced the company for "an act of cowardice that validates terrorist actions and sets a terrifying precedent". In fact the company had little choice in the matter as cinema owners had declared that they were not prepared to run the risk of showing the film.

Whether Sony's reaction to the hacking incident was the correct one or not, the company probably deserves to be censured over its failure to have an effective internet security system in place. In 2011, Sony's Play Station Network was disabled by hackers for 23 days, and a month later the company admitted that the account details (including credit card information) of 77 million users had been stolen. It was, at the time, one of the largest data security breaches in history. Sony Pictures Entertainment is, of course, a different company to Sony Online Entertainment, but the apparent failure of the parent company to upgrade cyber security at all its affiliates and subsidiaries seems a glaring one.

On the strength of evidence presented to him by security agencies, President Obama has blamed North Korea for last month's attack. According to the FBI, the malware used against Sony had "lines of code" and "data deletion" methods similar to malware used in other North Korean attacks, principally on the banks, television stations and government departments of neighbouring South Korea. And, the agency says, the malware was built on computers whose language default was Korean. But security experts are less certain, arguing that hackers borrow and share computer code routinely, and that anyone can tap servers for hacking and spamming.

One of the more alarming observations made about the Sony Pictures cyber attack is that it could have been perpetrated by any number of hackers for hire on the black market. Criminals have been quick to recognise that cyber attacks on banks and financial institutions can be spectacular earners, and to invest in or buy the necessary skills. The victims frequently avoid going to the police out of embarrassment – an added bonus. Talented hackers are also much in demand from governments and security agencies. China's People's Liberation Army is believed to have the equivalent of an entire division of hackers probing the computer systems of rival militaries for weaknesses, spying on and stealing from foreign corporations working in strategic industries, or formulating plans to disable or disrupt the servers and computer systems of rivals and potential enemies.

Australia's communications, banking, media, finance and transport sectors are all heavily computerised. Our power, water, and fuel supplies depend on them for their efficient operation. The evidence is mounting that safeguaring these systems from criminals and foreign governments should be accorded a higher prioroity.