Tech

Sony Hackers Threaten 9/11-Style Terrorist Attacks Against ‘The Interview’ Moviegoers

Giuseppe Macri Tech Editor
Font Size:

Hackers behind the massive cyberattack against Sony published a statement Tuesday threatening to attack movie theater audiences for “The Interview,” which stars James Franco and Seth Rogen in a comedic attempt to assassinate North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.

The self-described “Guardians of Peace” issued the threat along with the latest round of leaks on the file-sharing site Pastebin, which includes several ominous threats warning moviegoers to “remember the 11th of September 2001,” according to The Verge, and to stay away from movie theaters showing the film, which releases Dec. 25.

“We will clearly show it to you at the very time and places ‘The Interview’ be shown, including the premiere, how bitter fate those who seek fun in terror should be doomed to,” the statement reads. “Soon all the world will see what an awful movie Sony Pictures Entertainment has made. The world will be full of fear.”

In addition to the threat the hackers posted a collection of stolen emails belonging to Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton. Previous Sony leaks obtained in the late-November hack include several unreleased films and a series of embarrassing email exchanges between high-level execs, actors and producers.

Early evidence gleaned from the investigation suggests North Korea is behind the hack, and the country has been vocal in condemning the film since it was announced earlier this year. Pyongyang has denied any involvement, but praised the hackers’ success. (RELATED: New Evidence Suggests North Korea Hacked Sony Over Seth Rogen Comedy About Killing Kim Jong-un)

“Whatever comes in the coming days is called by the greed of Sony Pictures Entertainment. All the world will denounce the SONY,” the hackers said Tuesday.

A group of current and former Sony employees filed a suit against the company in California Tuesday for failing to secure personal employee information including emails, passports, bank account numbers and some 47,000 social security numbers, which were posted online by the hackers.

Among the leaked emails were exchanges between executives confirming their knowledge of vulnerabilities in Sony’s cybersecurity, and that the company failed to take action to strengthen security prior to the hack

Follow Giuseppe on Twitter and Facebook