“We take seriously North Korea\u2019s attack that aimed to create destructive financial effects on a U.S. company and to threaten artists and other individuals with the goal of restricting their right to free expression,” added Earnest.<\/p>\n
The attack was reportedly retaliation for Sony’s release of The Interview<\/em>, which the studio briefly pulled from theaters, a move that Obama said was “a mistake.” A North Korea spokespersondenied that it hacked Sony, though called the cyberattack a “righteous deed.”<\/p>\n The sanctions announced on Friday are meant to further isolate key North Korean entities by increasing financial pressure on the government and its officials, Lew said, with officials calling on financial institutions around the world to “take note” of the sanctions and refuse to do business with their targets.<\/p>\n “The order is not targeted at the people of North Korea, but rather is aimed at the government of North Korea and its activities that threaten the United States and others,”<\/span> Obama said in a letter to Congress.<\/p>\n Senior administration officials on Friday called them unprecedented, noting it was the first time the U.S. had used sanctions in response to a foreign country’s attack on a U.S. company.<\/p>\n They stood behind their belief that North Korea was responsible, with White House officials saying they “remain very confident” and an FBI official telling reporters, “We are standing by our assessment,” adding that cybersecurity firms that have raised doubts simply don’t have access to the same intelligence and information its investigators have seen.<\/p>\n The sanctions target three entities of the North Korean government and 10 officials who operate in and outside of North Korea.<\/p>\n The entities<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Reconnaissance General Bureau<\/strong><\/p>\n RGB is North Korea\u2019s primary intelligence organization and is involved, inter alia, in a range of activities to include conventional arms trade proscribed by numerous United Nations Security Council Resolutions. RGB was previously listed in the annex to E.O. 13551 on August 30, 2010. RGB is responsible for collecting strategic, operational, and tactical intelligence for the Ministry of the People\u2019s Armed Forces. Many of North Korea\u2019s major cyber operations run through RGB.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Korea Mining Development Trading Corporation<\/strong><\/p>\n KOMID is North Korea\u2019s primary arms dealer and main exporter of goods and equipment related to ballistic missiles and conventional weapons. KOMID, a North Korean state-owned entity, was previously listed in the annex to E.O. 13382 on July 1, 2005 for its role in North Korea\u2019s proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. It was also sanctioned by the United Nations in April 2009. KOMID has offices in multiple countries around the world and facilitates weapons sales for the North Korean government.<\/p>\n Korea Tangun Trading Corporation is subordinate to the Second Academy of Natural Sciences and is primarily responsible for the procurement of commodities and technologies to support North Korea’s defense research and development programs, including materials that are controlled under the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) or the Australia Group. Tangun Trading Corporation was designated by the Department of State pursuant to E.O. 13382 in September 2009 and was designated by the United Nations in 2009. The identifier information for this designated entity is also being updated to include several aliases it uses to operate internationally. The new aliases for Korea Tangun Trading Corporation include Ryung Seng Trading Corporation, Ryungseng Trading Corporation, and Ryungsong Trading Corporation.<\/p>\n The 10 individuals<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The people who are sanctions work with the North Korean government and are based both in North Korea and in a handful of allied countries around the globe, including China, Iran, Syria, Russia and Namibia. The majority of the individuals, who senior administration officials said were mostly in the illegal arms business, would “find it much more difficult for them to continue to ply their trade around the world.”<\/p>\n Kil Jong Hun and Kim Kwang Yon<\/strong> are officials of the North Korean government and represent the southern African interests of KOMID. Kil Jong Hun is KOMID\u2019s Representative in Namibia and an official of the North Korean government.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Source:\u00a0mashable.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The U.S. hit North Korea with sanctions on Friday in response to the hermit country’s alleged role in the massive cyberattack on Sony Pictures. White House officials said the move is just the first part of the Obama administration’s response to the hack, which “crossed a threshold” due to its destructive nature. The latest sanctions […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":79150,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[34,6],"yoast_head":"\n![\"APTOPIX](\"http:\/\/rack.3.mshcdn.com\/media\/ZgkyMDE1LzAxLzAyL2M2L05vcnRoS29yZWEuNTQzMzMuanBnCnAJdGh1bWIJMTIwMHg5NjAwPg\/22efb3f1\/dac\/North-Korea.jpg\" "\\"APTOPIX")
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