CYBERWAR/NORTH KOREA/SOUTH KOREA: “Suspected North Korean hackers stole sensitive military secrets, including joint U.S.-South Korean plans detailing how to eliminate the Pyongyang leadership, during an attack on Seoul’s defense data system last year, a South Korean lawmaker said.
Rhee Cheol-hee, a member of the ruling Democratic Party, said in an interview with local media published on Tuesday [10-10-17] that the hackers had broken into South Korea’s defense data center in September last year and snatched a trove of classified military documents.
The stolen documents included a blueprint known as Operations Plan 5015, which the U.S. and South Korea drew up in 2015 in case of war with North Korea, and detailed joint military procedures for a decapitation strike against North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un and other top leaders, Mr. Rhee said in the interview. A decapitation strike is a targeted attack to eliminate the North Korean leadership and senior command. His aides confirmed the comments, made to the Chosun Ilbo newspaper.
Mr. Rhee, a key member of the South Korean Parliament’s National Defense Committee, said the findings were confirmed belatedly by the Defense Ministry. The committee oversees the ministry, and Mr. Rhee represents the ruling party on the panel.
Mr. Rhee wasn’t available for further comment Tuesday. The South Korean Defense Ministry declined to comment. The U.S. Embassy in Seoul said it was aware of the development and declined to comment further.
North Korea has denied involvement in previous hacking attacks on South Korea.”
-Kwanwoo Jun, “North Korea Suspected of Hacking U.S.-South Korean War Plans,” The Wall Street Journal online, Oct. 10, 2017 07:57am