Majority of Stolen Crypto Attributed to North Korean Hackers
North Korean hackers stole $1.3bn in cryptocurrencies this year, says research firm Chainalysis. This amount is more than double last year’s total. The report highlights that 2024 saw a total of $2.2bn stolen in cryptocurrency thefts, with North Korea responsible for over half.
Some incidents involve North Korean hackers posing as remote IT workers to infiltrate technology and crypto firms. This tactic allowed them to compromise platforms and execute large-scale thefts. Chainalysis notes that this strategy has become a favored method for North Korean-linked hacker groups.
The US government believes that North Korea uses these stolen funds to bypass international sanctions and finance its weapons programs. Last week, a US federal court indicted 14 North Koreans for allegedly conspiring to extort funds from US companies. The US State Department also announced a reward of up to $5m for information on this scheme.
Methods and Impact of Crypto Theft in 2024
The rise in cryptocurrency thefts this year reflects an increasingly complex threat landscape. Most stolen funds resulted from compromised private keys, which grant access to user-controlled crypto assets. Centralized exchanges manage large sums of user funds, making them prime targets for key compromise attacks.
The impact of such thefts can be catastrophic for exchanges and users alike. Notable incidents this year included the theft of $300m in bitcoin from Japanese exchange DMM Bitcoin. Another significant breach saw $235m stolen from India-based WazirX, one of the country’s largest crypto platforms.
Chainalysis reports a 21% rise in stolen crypto compared to 2023, though it remains below 2021 and 2022 levels. The price of bitcoin has more than doubled this year, with speculation that a US administration under Donald Trump may be more crypto-friendly than Joe Biden’s. This increase in value may have driven greater efforts by hackers to target crypto assets.
The study’s findings stress the urgent need for the crypto industry to strengthen its security measures. Chainalysis emphasized the threat posed by North Korean hackers and the importance of defending against private key compromises. The growing sophistication of cyberattacks calls for more robust protocols to protect both users and platforms.
