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In the wake of Sony Pictures canceling the release of the movie The Interview, North Korea’s Internet is down as of December 22.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. President Obama Promised the North Koreans That They Will Face a ‘Proportional Response’
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The New York Times described the outage as the “worst North Korean network failures in years.” Just days before the outage, President Obama said that the U.S. would engage in a “proportional response” the North Korean threats against the movie The Interview.
2. One Expert Says: ‘North Korea’s Totally Down’
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The Associated Press reports that U.S. officials have not commented on who is responsible for the North Korean network outage. The Director of Internet analysis at Dyn Research, Doug Madory, told the Associated Press, that the North Korean Internet problems first emerged on December 21 but by December 22, Madory says “North Korea’s totally down.”
3. The Average North Korean Has No Access to the Internet
Downtown Pyongyang. (Getty)
Despite the loss of the Internet, the outage is only likely to affect the country’s vast government agencies. Average North Koreans have no access to the Internet. The BBC reported in November 2014, that there is a separate Intranet for North Korean citizens that many of the public use to get the news. The BBC further reported that those who live close to the northern Chinese border can access China’s cellular and Internet networks.
4. The Last Post From the North Korean News Agency Demanded an Apology From the U.S.
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The English language section of the North Korean news agency has not been updated since December 21. One of its final, hard hitting, Fox News-esque in its propaganda, articles, the agency said:
The Sony Pictures Entertainment, the biggest movie producer in the U.S., which produced the undesirable reactionary film “The Interview” daring hurt the dignity of the supreme leadership of the DPRK and agitating even terrorism and had a plan to distribute it, was exposed to surprisingly sophisticated, destructive and threatening cyber warfare and has been thrown into a bottomless quagmire after suffering property losses worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
5. This Could be the Latest Move in the War Over the Movie ‘The Interview’
The Interview will not open in theaters on Christmas Day. In fact, Sony Pictures says we might never see the movie. The comedy, starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, depicted the elaborate assassination of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un. THe movie cost Sony Pictures $44 million and has been plagued by threats from a group apparently loyal to North Korea.