An episode of Game of Thrones, episode 4 has found its way to the internet, after being leaked from one of HBO's international network partners, Star India, as per a report in Economic Times.
This incident is unrelated to the leak which resulted from the successful hacking of HBO servers earlier this week.
Sources familiar with the incident told The Verge that a leak from a distribution partner caused the episode to appear online.
Confirming the leak, a Star India spokesperson said in a statement to The Verge, “This confirms the compromise of episode 4 of Game of Thrones Season 7, earlier this afternoon. We take this breach very seriously and have immediately initiated forensic investigations at our and the technology partner’s end to swiftly determine the cause. This is a grave issue and we are taking appropriate legal remedial action.”
Meanwhile, the hackers who leaked unaired episodes of HBO's shows, including 'Game of Thrones', earlier this week have now threatened to release additional content on Sunday.
The hacker group wrote in an automated email reply sent to Variety.com, that it will release the leak gradually every week and added that the next release may come this Sunday at 12 GMT (5 p.m. IST).
The group also repeated its claim that it had obtained a total of 1.5TB of data when it broke into HBO's computer networks, Variety.com reported on Friday.
Russian cyber security firm Kaspersky Lab termed the incident a new phenomenon as far as cyber crimes go.
"The HBO attack was relatively a new phenomenon. At first and throughout the 90s and early 2000s, most hackers intended primarily on vandalism attacks rather than for making money. But with time, it became clear that cyber attacks could bring with them serious money," Altaf Halde, MD, Kaspersky Lab, told IANS.
"The value of such a cyber hack is entirely dependent on how much attention it can bring. Hacking into HBO and stealing 'Game of Thrones' piggybacks on one of the most active talking points in the world. Entertainment companies are like governments and hacking group.
(With IANS inputs)