With an estimated total of around $3.54 billion in stolen cryptocurrencies, North Korea continues to be a hotbed for hacking activities, posing one of the most significant threats in the cybercrime landscape.
According to data from 21.co, the parent company of 21Shares, the notorious North Korean hacker group Lazarus Group currently holds a cryptocurrency asset pool worth over $47 million, spread across various blockchains like Avalanche, BNB Chain, Polygon, Arbitrum, Ethereum, and Bitcoin.
Here’s the breakdown:
– BTC: 91.6% of the balance ($41.87 million)
– ETH: $1.91 million
– BNB: $1.06 million
– BUSD: $640,000
– AAVE: $61,490
Lazarus Group is known for being behind some of the largest cryptocurrency hacks. Some of their notable hacks include stealing $100 million from the non-custodial cryptocurrency wallet Atomic Wallet, as well as $60 million and $37 million from the cryptocurrency payment platforms Alphapo and CoinsPaid, respectively. Earlier this month, the cryptocurrency gambling platform Stake.com and the cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx fell victim to the notorious hacker group, losing $41 million and $54 million, respectively.
However, a recent Chainalysis report revealed an 80% decrease in Lazarus’s thefts, totaling $340 million as of mid-September, compared to the $1.65 billion stolen last year.
Notably, recent reports suggest that North Korea has been using the “loot” from cryptocurrency hacks, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars, to fund its nuclear weapons development. It appears that North Korea’s strategy serves as a warning bell that high-profile hacking incidents are likely to continue in the future, possibly intensifying further.
Earlier, Yonhap, the United Nations Security Council’s North Korea sanctions committee, accused North Korean hacker groups like Lazarus of attacking Harmony and Ronin Bridge. These hacks have been remarkably successful, raking in millions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrencies.
The committee claims that North Korean hackers have employed “non-technical attack methods” to infiltrate systems, hunt for targets, exploit security vulnerabilities, and compromise project security.
Particularly, these hacks have been immensely profitable, with hacker groups like BlueNoroff focusing on cryptocurrency theft for income. BlueNoroff has previously been accused by Western nations of attacking Bangladesh’s central bank in 2016.
In an effort to curb the rise of cybercrime, the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Office of Foreign Assets Control have identified and are monitoring 295 “black” wallets. However, Lazarus’s cryptocurrency wallet is still operational, with $486 in 24-hour inflows. The most recent transaction occurred on September 20.