Hack of new season of ‘Orange is the New Black’ portends a looming TV crisis
Hack of new season of ‘Orange is the New Black’ portends
a looming TV crisis
BY TIM JOHNSON APRIL 30, 2017 12:17 PM
After stealing and releasing 10 episodes of the fifth
season of the Netflix series “Orange is the New Black” a month before its
official premiere, a shadowy hacking group now is threatening to release shows
by four other networks unless the networks’ pay a ransom.
It’s a sign of things to come. The future is being
hacked, and there’s no certainty where it might end. In today’s digital world,
hackers can steal an ever-growing number of secrets.
If they can steal unreleased television shows, could they
also spoil the Oscar ceremony by stealing and threatening to reveal the winners
ahead of time? How about announcements of Nobel prizes? Or product launches
from Apple and Tesla?
In a fast-paced world, people don’t want to wait for
staged announcements designed for collective suspense. Criminal hackers seek to
profit from that desire. For better or worse, they steal – and reveal – the
future.
A previously unknown person or group calling itself
“thedarkoverlord” announced on Twitter Saturday that it had released the
“Orange is the New Black” shows on the popular file-sharing site The Pirate Bay
because Netflix refused to pay a ransom.
Netflix said the matter was in the hands of “the
appropriate law enforcement authorities.” The hacking group hinted that its
work was only beginning.
“Oh, what fun we’re all going to have. We’re not playing
any games anymore,” it said in one weekend tweet.
The hackers said they now hold unreleased shows from ABC,
Fox, National Geographic and IFC and would release them if ransoms weren’t
forthcoming.
The Netflix brouhaha began Friday afternoon with a brief
tweet from the “thedarkoverlord” saying, “Let’s try to be a bit more direct,
Netflix.”
The tweet carried a link to a site on Pirate Bay with the
first episode of season five of “Orange is the New Black.” At 11:36 a.m.
Saturday, nine more episodes were posted. Season five contains 13 episodes but
the hackers said they obtained the shows before the final episodes were
available.
“It didn’t have to be this way, Netflix. You’re going to
lose a lot more money in all of this than what our modest offer was. We’re
quite ashamed to breathe the same air as you,” the hackers said in a statement
posted on, then removed from, pastebin.com, a popular site for sharing text.
A website that follows developments related to piracy and
file-sharing, Torrent Freak, said it had been in touch with the hackers and
learned the stolen episodes were filched from Larson Studios, an audio
post-production facility in Hollywood. Larson Studios couldn’t be reached for
comment Sunday.
Torrent Freak published excerpts of a “contract” that the
hackers sought to have Larson Studios sign in exchange setting the ransom
payment terms. The document called for a payment of 50 bitcoin, which at
current value is about $66,100.
The spelling in the contract and in statements on pastebin.com
indicate the hackers are from Britain or areas of the world that follow
British, rather than U.S., spelling practices.
Netflix was scheduled to release season five of “Orange
is the New Black” on June 9.
The hackers did not say which programs from other
networks it has obtained.
“We’re not quite done yet, though. We’re calling you out:
ABC, National Geographic, Fox, IFC, and of course Netflix, still. There’s more
Netflix on the feasting menu soon (in addition to the other studios, of
course), but we’ll get to that later. Enjoy the fruits of _our_ labour,” the
statement says.
Larson Studios also does post-production work on shows
like “Queen of the South,” “New Girl,” and “Chance” for Fox 21 Television
Studios, “Glow” from Netflix, “Designated Survivor” from ABC, and “Portlandia”
from IFC.
Global cybercrime syndicates increasingly demand ransom
from hacking targets who fall victim to their digital traps and intrusions.
In a report released Thursday, the giant software
security company Symantec estimated that worldwide ransomware attacks surged
from 340,665 in 2015 to 463,841 in 2016. In these attacks, hackers commonly
encrypt a hard drive and offer a decryption key only on payment of ransom. In
addition to individuals, hospitals, schools and universities have been hit.
Twitter users offered suggestions to “thedarkoverlord” of
other places it might hack.
“I suggest Trump’s tax returns,” tweeted an account from
someone identified as Julie O. Marshall, an events manager.
Another suggested the hackers better fear for their
freedom
“Spoiler alert: you will be in jail soon!” tweeted
Laurent Jedeloo (@ljedeloo).
“Your going to get in a lot of trouble for this…” echoed
@grey_alien33
Still others made requests for unreleased television
shows they can’t wait to see, or hacks to fix their own blemished pasts.
“Hack something worthwhile like our credit rating. Wipe
us all clean. Or petty crimes. Or job history,” tweeted an account identified
as Mr. Karen Walker (@i_drunktweet)
Tim Johnson: 202-383-6028, @timjohnson
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