By Jun Ji-hye
North Korea is continuing to deny allegations that it carried out a cyber attack on Sony Pictures, and is urging the U.S. government to accept its offer to conduct a joint investigation into the incident.
“The United States needs to accede to our demands for the probe before it experiences bigger mishaps,” stated the Minju Chosun, one of Pyongyang’s state-controlled media outlets, Tuesday.
The argument came after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said that the repressive state was responsible for the Sony hacking, without providing evidence to support the claim because of the “protection of sensitive sources.”
U.S. President Barack Obama said that Washington would respond “proportionally” to the attack.
The repressive state has repeatedly expressed anger at Sony’s comedy movie “The Interview,” which is about a CIA plot for a TV show host and his producer to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
“The U.S. is even considering putting us back on its list of terrorism sponsors without submitting concrete evidence. Such an arrogant act is only to confuse the North Korean system,” the North’s newspaper said. “The Sony incident is self-inflicted by the U.S.”
The isolated state also previously called for the joint probe, but Washington flatly rejected it, urging Pyongyang to admit its liabilities and pay for the damage.
North Korea rejected the U.S. accusations amid reports suggesting that somebody else could hack Sony.
The Associated Press reported last week that questions remain over who hacked Sony, and suggested the possibility that disgruntled Sony insiders or somebody else launched the attack and made it look like it was done by North Korea. It also cited cyber-security experts saying it was very hard to pinpoint the culprit behind a hacking attack.
U.S. cyber security firm Norse Corporation joined in casting doubt over the North’s alleged involvement, saying that at least one former employee of Sony could have helped hackers conduct the operation. The firm narrowed the list of suspects to six people, including at least one Sony veteran with the necessary technical background to carry out the attack.
In response, FBI spokeswoman Jenny Shearer told Bloomberg, “There is no credible information to indicate that any other individual is responsible for this cyber incident.”
The U.S. government stood by the FBI.
“We are aware that there have been some reports of that kind. However, as the FBI has made clear ― and the U.S. government stands behind the FBI analysis ― we are confident that North Korea is responsible for this destructive attack and we stand by that conclusion,” Jeff Rathke, a State Department spokesman, said at a regular press briefing.
Follow Jun Ji-hye on Twitter @TheKopJihye