North Korean hackers stole $1.2 billion from crypto companies

The most “fruitful” for them was 2022. For this money, they finance the nuclear programs of the government. Over 5 years, North Korean hackers managed to “cleanse” crypto wallets in the amount of 1.5 trillion won ($1.2 billion), according to the Associated Press. Moreover, half of this amount fell on this year – $ 625 million. It is assumed that cyber-criminals use the stolen funds to help the government in the nuclear program.. The authorities see this as the most profitable and risk-free way to replenish the treasury, the Associated Press points out. According to one of the UN member states, in 2020-2021, North Korean hackers stole $ 50 million from exchanges in Europe, Asia and North America. This is evidenced by the analysis carried out by the Chainalysis platform.. But the numbers are different.. According to them, in 2021, the DPRK carried out at least 7 attacks.. As a result, they withdrew assets worth almost $400 million from world exchanges. Interestingly, Pyongyang is not alien to legal ways to raise funds – a few years ago they decided to issue their … dollar bonds. The US Treasury found out that North Korean hackers often withdraw money using a crypto-mixer Tornado Cash. Therefore, in August, they imposed sanctions on the company.According to the authorities, the use of the service by many individuals and groups has led to the laundering of more than $ 7 billion in cryptocurrency since 2019. The most famous gang in North Korea is called Lazarus.. They were able to steal over $455 million. Including due to the Wormhole and Horizon Bridge exploits.