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- 1 North Korean hackers have raided around $700 Million in the cryptocurrency industry in 2023.
- 2 Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is liable for around one-third of the funds looted in 2023.
As technology is progressing, the rate of criminal acts upsurge. Around $1.8 Billion of digital assets were lost by crypto users in diverse hacks and scams in 2023 and almost one-third of the hacks fell in DPRK’s pocket. Potentially pocketed around $700 Million of cryptocurrencies via cybercrime and unlawful activities.
North Korean Hackers Evading International Laws
TRM Labs, a blockchain intelligence company revealed 2023’s crypto theft report that shocked the entire crypto universe. The big-name coming out of the report is the DPRK, a North Korean hacker group.
According to the report, over 33% of the crypto thefts in 2023 were finished by North Korean hackers, holding approximately $700 Million. In addition to this, the group has stolen over $1.5 Billion in the past two years. Such facts vitrine the growing proficiency of the DPRK in the illicit field.
Hitting the crypto companies is not a big deal for North Korean hackers, who have been stealing around $3 Billion since 2017. Also, a gradual rise has been recorded in illicit actions since 2017.
The year 2022 is considered to be one of the biggest years for crypto hacks and exploits, looses around $3.7 Billion from 175 incidents, according to TRM Labs.
Most of the incidents were through code exploits and infrastructure attacks. Additionally, North Korean hackers used Tornado Cash, a crypto mixer to steal around $1 billion of funds in the past ten cryptocurrency heists. However, the US Department of Justice imposed sanctions on Tornado Cash in August 2023.
The hacker community thus came up with a new strategy like converting the stolen assets to cryptocurrencies like Tron or Tether. The new strategy added fuel to the laundering of stolen funds as well as evading detection by legal agencies.
A few of the major thefts attempted by DPRK in 2023 involved platforms like CoinsPaid, Atomic Wallet, and Alphapo, resulting in a loss of around $197 Million in crypto.
What Next?
Despite sanctions and vigilance, North Korean hackers maintained the top position in the world of crypto threats. The team is continuously coming up with new tactics to evade law enforcement. Continuously evolving theft tactics made it challenging for agencies and crypto regulators to restrict such actions and safeguard the crypto community.
The crypto community, international bodies, and regulators need to remain alert and collaborate to encounter such thefts and protect their crypto wallets. In addition, new regulations are expected from cybersecurity and financial regulations that may decline the thefts and growing illicit actions.
Disclaimer
This article is for informational purposes only and does not provide any financial, investment, or other advice. The author or any people mentioned in this article are not responsible for any financial loss that may occur from investing in or trading. Please do your research before making any financial decisions.
Adarsh Singh is a true connoisseur of Defi and Blockchain technologies, who left his job at a “Big 4” multinational finance firm to pursue crypto and NFT trading full-time. He has a strong background in finance, with MBA from a prestigious B-school. He delves deep into these innovative fields, unraveling their intricacies. Uncovering hidden gems, be it coins, tokens or NFTs, is his expertise. NFTs drive deep interest for him, and his creative analysis of NFTs opens up engaging narratives. He strives to bring decentralized digital assets accessible to the masses.
