‘Fury,’ staring Brad Pitt and ‘Annie’ among titles being downloaded
At least five new movies from Sony Pictures are being devoured on copyright-infringing file-sharing hubs online in the wake of the hack attack Monday, November 24th that hobbled the studio earlier in the week, Variety reported
Sony’s hacking woes continue: Over the holiday weekend a number of the studio’s watermarked awards DVD screeners leaked online, including WWII actioner Fury and the upcoming Annie, Still Alice, and Mr. Turner. The leaks come just days after an online attack crippled the company’s computers. A fifth film, the March 2015 release To Write Love On Her Arms, also surfaced on file-sharing platforms over the Thanksgiving break as Sony emails remained incapacitated across the studio.
“Fury” has been downloaded by over 888,000 unique IP addresses since showing up on peer-to-peer networks on Nov. 27, according to piracy-tracking firm Excipio. That’s high enough to be the second most-downloaded movie currently being pirated, and it’s not out of movie theaters yet.
“The theft of Sony Pictures Entertainment content is a criminal matter, and we are working closely with law enforcement to address it,” a Sony spokeswoman said in a statement to Variety.
A source with knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the hacking earlier this week divulged that the multi-title leak is likely related to the hacking. Many of the leaked copies are watermarked.
Sony Pictures Entertainment has told employees companywide to not connect to corporate networks or access email, after the studio was hit by what appeared to be a malicious hacker attack threatening to disclose “secrets,” Variety has confirmed.
In the attack on the studio’s corporate systems Nov. 24, an image of a skeleton appeared on company computers with a message that said, “Hacked by #GOP,” with the group behind it calling itself “Guardians of Peace.” The message threatened to release “secrets and top secrets” of the company. Currently being investigated is a connection between upcoming Sony movie “The Interview,” and North Korea.
Sony’s outbreak marks the biggest piracy incident since July, when Lionsgate saw “Expendables 3″ pop up online three weeks before its theatrical release. Police arrested two men in London earlier this week in connection with the stolen file.
AJ Woodson
AJ Woodson is the Editor-In-Chief of Black Westchester and Co-Owner of Urban Soul Media Group, the parent company, Host & Producer of the People Before Politics Radio Show. AJ is a Father, Brother, An Author, Journalism Fellow (Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism), Hip-Hop Artist - one third of the legendary underground rap group JVC FORCE known for the single Strong Island, Radio Personality, Hip-Hop Historian, Documentarian, Activist, Criminal Justice Advocate and Freelance Journalist whose byline has appeared in several print publications and online sites including The Source, Vibe, the Village Voice, Upscale, Sonicnet.com, Launch.com, Rolling Out Newspaper, Daily Challenge Newspaper, Spiritual Minded Magazine, Word Up! Magazine, On The Go Magazine and several others.
