Sony suffers since cyber-attacks

The bizarre story of a leaked US blockbuster about North Korea leader Kim Jong-un being assassinated is escalating to an alarming scale with North Korea threatening to retaliate against the US.

The whole saga has had a disastrous effect on the Sony Pictures brand.

According to a new report from YouGov BrandIndex, consumer perception of the Sony brand has fallen to its lowest level in six years.

After receiving cyber-attacks and threats against the company Sony announced last week that the film, The Interview, would not be released in theatres on Christmas day as planned. President Obama deemed this a ‘mistake’ and said, ‘We cannot have a dictator imposing censorship in the US’.

Since December 1 a hacking group that calls itself Guardians of Peace has released all manner of personal information from internal emails to salaries. It is being dubbed the highest-profile corporate hack in history.

As well as brand perception Sony will suffer for the damage to its employees who have been subjected to direct threats by the hackers. Sony Entertainment CEOs, Michael Lynton and Amy Pascal, have sent a note to Sony staff thanking them for, “professionalism during this extremely difficult time.” But with the hackers promising more material in the new year Sony may not be out of woods yet.

Sony’s brand last took a hit in April 2011 when the PlayStation Network was breached and millions of accounts were compromised.