According to the US Treasury Department, the hacking group Lazarus is presumed to have stolen more than $600 million of cryptocurrency (Ethereum) from the Axie Infinity-linked Ronin bridge. On his side, Cheong fell victim to a phishing attack and was deprived of a $1.7 million worth of NFTs from his hot wallet. The DeFiance Capital founder suspects BlueNoroff to be responsible for this attack, which is also part of the Lazarus group.
Following this, Cheong alerts that no organization is safe since the hackers represent a “state-sponsored cyber crime organization that is extremely resourceful and sophisticated”. He then published multiple tweets disclosing pieces of advice to secure one’s crypto assets. Regarding the Treasury Department, it was announced that the office has blacklisted a presumed Lazarus-held crypto wallet, and has started a cooperation with the FBI to investigate the Lazarus Group. It also plans on freezing Lazarus’ assets.
These actions demonstrate that North Korea has developed more virulent cyberattacks over the years, so the North Korean economy can prosper. According to a report published last January, the North Korean cybercrime organizations are well-known for creating fake companies. In fact, this can justify the difficulties the government meets regarding the sanctions on their missile and nuclear activities.
