A South Korean nuclear plant’s computer network has been hacked, exposing internal data but not putting the nuclear reactors in danger, according to multiple reports.
The Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. Ltd. said on Monday it is investigating the breach.
The attack’s timing has caused concern given it occurred as North Korea was promising “counteraction” for its ongoing feud with the U.S. over a recent cyber assault on Sony Pictures. The U.S. and South Korea are close allies.
{mosads}North Korea has also been tied to several cyber operations targeting South Korea, including a slate of 2013 cyberattacks that hit banks and media outlets.
Pyongyang issued bombastic threats against the U.S. over the weekend after Washington accused the reclusive regime of sponsoring a hack on Sony in retaliation for the film studio’s controversial comedy “The Interview,” about a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The film studio pulled the movie after hackers stole and leaked the studio’s internal data, then made violent threats against theaters screening the film.
Details on the South Korean nuclear plant hack are sparse.
Reuters spoke with one plant official who said the assault appeared to be the work of “elements who want to cause social unrest.”
But the official insisted: “It is 100 percent impossible that a hacker can stop nuclear power plants by attacking them because the control monitoring system is totally independent and closed.”