The cyberattack on Sony Pictures' computer system was an "act of war" and the United States should launch a similar attack of its own on North Korea, Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain said Friday.
"This is the greatest blow to free speech that I've seen in my lifetime probably," McCain said on Arizona radio station
KFYI 550's "The Mike Broomhead Show."
Further, he said that the United States has "to respond in kind. We have lots of capability and I'm not talking about bombing raids, but in cyber and we ought to respond in kind."
McCain said that he plans to hold a hearing during the first two weeks of the next congressional session, and said that he doesn't advocate responding to the hackers' attacks with traditional weapons, like rocket or missiles, but responding in cyberspace.
"How do we react if somebody hacks into the next movie they don't want people to see?" said McCain, warning Americans of the capability of cyberattackers."When you think of that, it's very serious."
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the FBI and Justice Department are still investigating the hacking, reports
CNN, but officials do plan to have a "proportional" response to the attack, which is "being treated as a serious national security matter."
Meanwhile, "there is evidence to indicate that we have seen destructive activity with malicious intent that was initiated by a sophisticated actor," Earnest said.
U.S. officials, though, are also "mindful of the fact that sophisticated actors when they carry out actions like this are oftentimes, not always, but often seeking to provoke a response from the United States," said Earnest.
The cyberattacks came in response to Sony Pictures' controversial comedy "The Interview," which depicts an assassination plot against North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and portrays him as a buffoon.
Sony pulled the movie after the hackers threatened to attack movie theaters showing the film, a move sparking outrage nationwide.
McCain on Friday joined calls, including from the actor George Clooney, for Sony to release the movie for free online, saying the studio should "suck it up [and] show the movie."
On Thursday, McCain also said the Obama administration has failed to "satisfactorily address" the threat of cyberwarfare, and plans to address the issue further as the top senator on the Senate Armed Services Committee.
"Cybersecurity is the least understood, most dangerous element of our national security today," McCain said.