Netflix Says 'Appropriate' Law Enforcement Dealing With Hacking Situation
30 Apr, 2017 By: Erik GruenwedelMost episodes of the fifth season of Netflix’s original series “Orange Is the New Black” were released April 29 on a file-sharing site by hackers after Netflix reportedly refused to pay a ransom request. The award-winning series is slated to bow on Netflix June 9.
The series is produced for Netflix by Lionsgate, which is not subject to any data breach issues.
The SVOD pioneer, in a statement, said it is aware of the alleged security breach of a third-party production vendor by hackers calling themselves “The Dark Overlord,” adding, “the appropriate law enforcement authorities are involved.”
The hackers, in a tweet, also claim to have unreleased content from ABC, Fox, National Geographic and IFC.
“Oh, what fun we're all going to have. We're not playing any games anymore,” the hackers .
The pirates claimed to have the first 10 episodes of “Orange,” subsequently releasing the first episode April 28 and nine others April 29 after Netflix refused to accept their “modest” ransom offer.
“It didn’t have to be like this, Netflix,” the group tweeted April 29.
Online data breaches and cyber security have increased in recent years, due in part to the reality that even tech-savvy companies like Netflix still rely on third-party vendors whose security may not be as advanced.
Sony Pictures in 2014 dealt with a high-profile data security breach by hackers allegedly aligned with North Korea in advance of the studio’s theatrical release of comedy The Interview with Seth Rogen and James Franco.
It remains to be seen whether Netflix will move up the launch date for “Orange.”
“Nothing new to report,” spokesperson Jonathan Friedland said in an April 30 email.