Obama calls Sony’s “The Interview” cancellation over hack “a mistake”

PanARMENIAN.Net - Just hours after the FBI confirmed that North Korea was behind the devastating cyberattack on Sony, President Barack Obama said at his end-of-the-year press conference that he thought Sony made a mistake in canceling the release of The Interview. The president also stated that the U.S. would be responding to North Korea, although he did not further elaborate on those plans, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

"Sony is a corporation; it suffered significant damage. There were threats against its employees. I am sympathetic to the concerns that they faced. Having said all that, yes, I think they made a mistake," the president said.

"In this interconnected digital world, there are going to be opportunities for hackers to engage in cyber assaults, both in the private sector and in the public sector. Now, our first order of business is making sure we do everything we can to harden sites and prevent those kinds of attacks from taking place," Obama said.

At another point, he also said he wished the studio would've "spoken to me first. I would have told them do not get into a pattern in which you are intimidated by these kinds of criminal attacks."

On Wednesday, Sony Pictures canceled the release of The Interview after five major U.S. theater circuits shelved plans to screen the Seth Rogen and James Franco film, which was set for a Dec. 25 debut.

"We cannot have a society in which a dictator someplace can start imposing censorship here in the United States. Because if someone is able to intimidate folks out of releasing a satirical movie, imagine what they start doing when they see a documentary they don't like, or news reports they don't like," the president said. "Or even worse, imagine if producers and distributors and others start engaging in self-censorship because they don't want to offend the sensibilities of somebody whose sensibilities probably need to be offended."

"Imagine if, instead of being a cyber threat, someone had broken into their offices and destroyed a bunch of computers and stolen discs," Obama posited. "Is that what it takes for you to suddenly pull the plug on something?"

In a Friday statement, the FBI confirmed that North Korea was behind the attack. "As a result of our investigation, and in close collaboration with other U.S. Government departments and agencies, the FBI now has enough information to conclude that the North Korean government is responsible for these actions," the agency said in a statement.

MPAA CEO Chris Dodd followed the FBI confirmation with a statement deeming the hack "a despicable, criminal act." The MPAA exec also added: "The Internet is a powerful force for good and it is deplorable that it is being used as a weapon not just by common criminals, but also, sophisticated cyber terrorists. We cannot allow that front to be opened again on American corporations or the American people."

In the press conference on Friday, the president also singled out the stars of the Sony assassination comedy. "I think it says something interesting about North Korea that they decided to have the state mount an all-out assault on a movie studio because of a satirical movie starring Seth Rogen and James Flacco (Franco)," Obama said, prompting laughter from the press corps. "I love Seth and I love James, but the notion that that was a threat to them I think gives you some sense of the kind of regime we’re talking about here."

He added: "They caused a lot of damage, and we will respond. We will respond proportionally, and we’ll respond in a place and time and manner that we choose. It’s not something that I will announce here today at a press conference."