On Friday, President Barack Obama issued new sanctions on North Korean government officials as well as Pyongyang's defense industry over the recent cyberattacks against Sony, in what the White House referred to as "ongoing provocative, destabilizing, and repressive actions and policies, particularly its destructive and coercive cyber attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment."
"Today's actions are the first aspect of our response," the White House statement said.
Many cyber security experts still doubt North Korea's involvement in the attacks, calling evidence circumstantial at best, but the U.S. insists it is certain North Korea is responsible.
The executive order "authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to impose sanctions on individuals and entities associated with the Government of North Korea," the statement said. "We take seriously North Korea's attack that aimed to create destructive financial effects on a U.S. company and to threaten artists and other individuals with the goal of restricting their right to free expression."
The 10 North Korean individuals targeted by the sanctions weren't necessarily involved in the attacks, senior U.S. officials said, according to Reuters, but anyone who works for or helps the North Korean government is now fair game, said the officials. Some of these individuals operate in Syria, China, Russia, Iran and Namibia.
Further sanctions were also issued to intelligence organization Reconnaissance General Bureau, Kore Mining Development Trading Corp., and defense industry-focused Korea Tangun Trading Corp, CNBC reported.
North Korea is already under tight U.S. sanctions over its nuclear program, and while the additional sanctions will have a limited effect, it's the first time the U.S. has imposed sanctions on another country for its involvement in a cyberattack against an American company, reported The Associated Press.
"The order is not targeted at the people of North Korea, but rather is aimed at the government of North Korea and its activities that threaten the United States and others," Obama wrote in a letter to House and Senate leaders, AP reported.
