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Some South Korean officials say there may be more evidence North Korea
launched a series of cyber attacks that hit Web sites around the world.
According
to South Korean news reports from the Yonhap news agency and the
JoongAng Ilbo newspaper Saturday, the country's spy agency obtained
documents ordering a North Korean army unit to start the attack.
The
reports say some top South Korean lawmakers were briefed on the
evidence earlier this week. But the National Intelligence Service says
it cannot confirm the reports.
The multi-day cyber attack
affected government Web sites in South Korea and the United States.
The Korea Communications Commission warned Friday a new phase of the
virus could destroy the data of thousands of personal computers in
South Korea.
If North Korea did play a role in the cyber
attacks, it would represent a further escalation of tensions on the
Korean peninsula between Pyongyang and Seoul.
North Korea has
engaged in a series of long and short-range missile tests in recent
months, as well as a nuclear test back in May.
Computer experts
describe this week's attack as a "distributed denial of service." A
computer virus spreads from one personal computer to another, directing
data traffic from those computers to the targeted Web sites.
The
attacks hit the South Korean Defense Ministry, Intelligence Service and
at least one Korean bank. In the United States, Web sites for the
White House, departments of Homeland Security, Defense, and Treasury,
and the Voice of America were also targeted.
South Korean
intelligence officials say the attackers used 86 Internet Protocol
addresses in 16 nations, including South Korea, Japan, China and the
United States, to launch the cyber strikes.
Some information for this report was provided by AP.
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