How North Korea perfected the crypto heist
Summary
Binance says blockchain partners have frozen at least $3 billion of the $6.3 billion stolen in a crypto heist that investigators link to North Korean hackers. Researchers say the attackers used rapid, automated transactions and methods to erase evidence, reflecting the growing scale and speed of North Korea’s cyber operations.Key Facts
- Binance said the attackers may have gained access by compromising an engineer’s laptop and other points of breach.
- Several blockchain investigation firms linked the attack to TraderTraitor, a group associated with North Korea’s Lazarus Group.
- Binance co-CEO Richard Teng said the hackers used a mechanism that destroyed their tools and traces.
- Chainalysis reported that the attackers moved the stolen funds in as little as 20 minutes.
- TRM Labs researchers found that preparations for the attack began about 36 hours before it started.
- TraderTraitor was also linked to last year’s $1.5 billion theft from the ByBit crypto exchange.
- North Korean hackers stole $81 million in a 2016 attack on Bangladesh’s central bank after attempting to take nearly $1 billion.
- Pindrop Security CEO Vijay Balasubramaniyan said North Korean job applicants made up one in 47 applications across his customer base this year, compared with one in 343 last year.
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