Tony Lewis speaks to the BBC about his role investigating the 2014 hack of Sony Pictures in a new BBC podcast, “The Lazarus Heist.” Speaking to journalists Geoff White and Jean Lee, Tony discusses his time as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and explains the measures the hackers took to conceal their identities. He also explores how investigators were able to discover that North Korea was behind the cyberattack. “It quickly became apparent that it was national security-related,” Tony explains, adding that the hackers spent months prior to the attack engaged in a phishing campaign designed to gain access to Sony’s servers, and that they took thorough steps to erase their tracks. His interview, which occurs in episode two of the ongoing series, can be heard here.
Tony also appears in episode four to discuss the crucial connections between the cyber heist at Bangladesh Bank and the attack at Sony Pictures, and what would be significant evidence in determining that North Korea was behind the attack. He described law enforcement’s efforts to identify the social media accounts that were used in the months leading up to both computer intrusions. “There were some accounts that were used to both target Sony Pictures and conduct reconnaissance and target Bangladesh Bank,” Tony says. The full podcast can be found here.