North Korean hackers have ramped up efforts to steal cryptocurrency, with losses attributed to them reaching more than $2 billion so far this year—a record haul, according to researchers at Elliptic. These thefts account for roughly 13% of the country's estimated GDP, per United Nations figures. While North Korean hacking groups such as the Lazarus Group have long targeted crypto companies, investigators now say there's a growing shift toward wealthy individual holders, who often lack the robust security systems used by businesses, reports the BBC.
Elliptic's chief scientist, Tom Robinson, points out that attacks on individuals are less likely to be reported, suggesting the true scale of North Korea's crypto theft may be even higher. "We are aware of many other thefts that share some of the hallmarks of North Korea-linked activity but lack sufficient evidence to be definitively attributed," he notes.
Western security agencies believe the regime uses these illicit funds to support its nuclear and missile programs. The largest known single incident this year occurred in February, when hackers reportedly siphoned $1.4 billion from the Bybit exchange. Other notable attacks include $14 million taken from WOO X users, $1.27 million from LND.fi, and $1.2 million from Seedify, per NK News. Elliptic says its analysts have tied more than 30 attacks to North Korea this year, with the largest theft from an individual coming in at $100 million.
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The cumulative value of crypto assets stolen by North Korea now exceeds $6 billion. The regime has denied involvement in hacking, but researchers continue to trace stolen funds via blockchain transactions. Meanwhile, North Korea is also suspected of operating fake IT worker schemes to generate additional revenue and circumvent international sanctions, per the BBC.
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