Hackers Doxxed Game of Thrones Actors

At the end of July, a group of hackers revealed they’d successfully hacked US cable channel HBO. It now seems the reported 1.5TB of data obtained contained personal details of a number of Game of Thrones actors. The hackers leaked those details today to compel HBO to pay a hefty ransom fee to protect the remaining information. In other words, the hackers doxxed the actors in order to extort the studio to the tune of around $7 million.

Doxxed by Mr Smith

The hackers – dubbed Mr Smith, presumably in reference to the antagonist from The Matrix –  contacted HBO’s Richard Plepler. Mr Smith released a video, addressed to Pleper, demanding that HBO pays the ransom this week. Otherwise, Mr Smith will dump more data from the hack.

Samuel Gibbs of The Guardian reports:

“In a five-minute video letter from somebody calling themselves “Mr Smith” to HBO chief executive Richard Plepler, the hackers told the company to pay within three days or they would put online the HBO shows and confidential corporate data they claim to have stolen.”

As a show of intent, Mr Smith released 3.4GB of files. The data includes personal data relating to Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey, and Emilia Clarke. Dinklage, Headey, and Clarke play Tyrion, Cersei, and Daenerys, respectively, in Game of Thrones.

Doxxed Game of Thrones Actors

Gibbs writes:

“One document appears to contain the confidential cast list for Game of Thrones, listing personal telephone numbers and email addresses for actors such as Peter Dinklage, Lena Headey and Emilia Clarke.”

The Ransom

As for the ransom itself, Mr Smith wants half of its supposed “$12m to $15m” annual “salary”. This “salary” is the money the hackers earn from blackmailing the companies it breaches. Gibbs explains:

“The hackers demanded “our six-month salary in bitcoin”, claiming they earn $12m to $15m a year from blackmailing organisations whose networks they have breached. They said they would only deal directly with “Richard” and only send one “letter” detailing how to pay.

The hackers claim it took six months to break into HBO’s network, and that they spend $500,000 a year purchasing so called zero-day exploits that let them break into networks through holes not yet known to Microsoft and other software companies.”

If HBO does not pay the ransom, Mr Smith is sure to dump more data from its 1.5TB haul.