It Just Keeps Getting Worse For HBO

Last week, we spoke about the rash of hacks that made off with 1.5 terabytes of data from HBO’s servers and distributors. At the time, the extent of the potential damage was not known. Nevertheless, HBO’s CEO, Richard Plepler, did his best to reassure the public and his own employees that everything was under control. But as a new week begins, it seems that this could not be farther from the truth. The Hackers have finally shown their hand.

According to The Guardian, Game Of Thrones cast members’ personal phone numbers and email addresses were leaked online in the latest file dump, along with draft scripts for Game Of Thrones, administrator passwords and more than 50 internal documents. In a recent video sent to HBO, the hackers have demanded about $7m in bitcoin, Naming Richard (Plepler) as their only point of contact. If the company refuses to pay, even more proprietary data will be dumped. And at this point, it could be anything. With 1.5 terabytes, the possibilities are endless. So far, the current leaks have paled in comparison to the Sony hack in 2014, but the situation is still developing and has the potential to sour very quickly.

Both The Guardian and Polygon have reached out to HBO for comment on the current ongoing investigation. This is what HBO had to say on the matter:

HBO believed that further leaks might emerge from this cyber incident when we confirmed it last week. As we said, the forensic review is ongoing. While it has been reported that a number of emails have been made public, the review to date has not given us a reason to believe that our e-mail system as a whole has been compromised.We continue to work around the clock with outside cybersecurity firms and law enforcement to resolve the incident. Meanwhile, our dedicated employees continue to focus on delivering the high quality of entertainment and service for which we are known.

Now, HBO seems to have no intention of paying the ransom. But we will see if their resolve continues to hold firm as time rolls on. For the moment, we can only speculate on what may happen in the future.