Entertainment channel HBO got hacked on Monday and the company has allegedly confirmed that over 1.5TB worth of data have been compromised by the hackers.
However, the biggest worry for the is the hack might end up leaking multiple episodes of its hit series Game of Thrones (GoT), or any aspect of the show like script of the episode. Having said that, HBO has refused from confirming those reports.
More than the incident, HBO has raised alarms as to how data at such quantity was hacked into, without the security forces detecting the breach, while it happened.
To have lost 1.5 Terabytes of data would have taken time. It could have been mitigated, if the alarm systems were in place, so the damage could have been minimisedAnkush Johar, Director, BugsBounty.com
Reuters has quoted Entertainment Weekly which reported that hackers stole 1.5TB of data and had already posted online yet-to-air episodes of "Ballers" and "Room 104," along with "a script or treatment" for next week's episode of "Game of Thrones."
There has been a cyber incident directed at the company which has resulted in some stolen proprietary information, including some of our programming. Any intrusion of this nature is obviously disruptive, unsettling, and disturbing for all of us.Letter from Richard Plepler, Chairman, HBO
None of the GoT episodes have leaked till now, and for its sakes, HBO would be hoping that whoever’s behind the hack, doesn’t end up putting it on various torrent platforms on the platter for anxious fans and users.
GoT is an extremely valuable property for HBO, and that’s more than evident as to how they try to market the product, tease its upcoming episodes, keeping the fans at the edge of their seats all the time.
Experts believe that even after the Sony hacking incident in 2014 (which resulted in pre-release leak of movie ‘The Interview’), entertainment businesses have failed to realise the threat of digital theft.
The question is not if you will be hacked, it’s when you will be hacked. And when you do, have you put the right alarm bells in place to mitigate your risk and minimise the damageAnkush Johar, Director, BugsBounty.com
With ever-growing use of digital services, it is paramount that platforms like HBO and Netflix among others fool-proof their repertoire from such data mishaps, which could hurt them in billions of dollars.
(With Reuters inputs)
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