S. Korea's spy agency suspects N. Korea hacked joint war plan

SEOUL, Dec. 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's intelligence agency suspects North Korea
may be behind the recent hacking of a South Korean-U.S. war plan designed to cope
with contingency in the North, according to lawmakers who were briefed by the
agency Monday.
The breach occurred late last month via an Internet Protocol (IP) address
registered in China, a route North Korea is believed to use when collecting
computer files from foreign networks, Seoul officials earlier said.
"We don't have concrete evidence to prove it was committed by North Korea, but we
are suspecting so," Won Sei-hoon, chief of the National Intelligence Service, was
quoted as saying in a closed-door briefing to National Assembly intelligence
committee, citing the Chinese IP address.
Won's remarks, disclosed to reporters by Rep. Chung Chin-sup of the ruling Grand
National Party and Rep. Park Young-sun of the major opposition Democratic Party,
were the first official comments coming from the intelligence agency over the
source of the hacking.
The breached file "does not contain anything that would seriously undermine the
security" of South Korea when leaked, Won was quoted by the lawmakers as saying.
The joint action scenario, called OPLAN 5027, allows for the dispatch of nearly
700,000 U.S. troops to the Korean Peninsula should emergencies erupt in North
Korea or a full-fledged conflict arise in the region.
Possible emergencies in North Korea that may prompt the action include the
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the collapse of the Kim Jong-il
regime or a mass defection.
The U.S. has 28,500 troops stationed in South Korea as a legacy of the 1950-53
Korean War.
Concerning a recent currency reform in North Korea, Won said the situation has
"largely settled" and added that he does not see North Korea as being in a state
of confusion, according to the lawmakers.
hkim@yna.co.kr
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