The US Government Cracks Down on North Korean Hacking Organization

The US government has made a significant breakthrough in the fight against cybercrime, seizing $2.67 million worth of cryptocurrency stolen by the notorious North Korean hacking organization, Lazarus Group.

This is a major step towards dismantling the group’s extensive cybercrime efforts, which have led to the theft of an estimated $3 billion to $4.1 billion in cryptocurrency since 2017.

The seized funds include $1.7 million in USDT (Tether) from the 2022 Deribit hack and $970,000 worth of Avalanche-bridged Bitcoin (BTC.b) stolen from Stake.com in 2023.

The Lazarus Group, a sophisticated criminal organization, used the Tornado Cash mixer to conceal its existence by moving the cryptocurrency through various Ethereum addresses.

Law enforcement officials have been closely monitoring the group’s actions, and their primary goal is to recover $1.7 million of the stolen USDT.

The Lazarus Group has been making headlines for years due to their use of custom software designed for specific applications, which have targeted Steadefi, Coinshift, EasyFi, Bondly, and Nexus Mutual.

Their cryptocurrency thefts have reportedly cost between $3 billion and $4.1 billion since 2017, with the Deribit hack in 2022 accounting for $28 million.

During the Lazarus Group’s theft of Avalanche-bridged Bitcoin at Stake.com in 2023, $970,000 worth of it was spread through various hacking operations.

Other major stablecoin issuers have blacklisted a significant amount of cryptocurrency, including the Steadefi hack and the Coinshift hack that stole over $900,000 in cryptocurrency.

The blacklist includes $374,000 for tether, and the total blacklisted amount by major stablecoin issuers is $3.4 million.

The US government’s decision to seize the stolen cryptocurrency is a significant victory in the battle against cybercrime and cryptocurrency-related theft.

In light of the ongoing developments in the cryptocurrency industry, it is crucial for governments, law enforcement agencies, and cryptocurrency exchanges to collaborate and strengthen their security measures against groups like the Lazarus Group.

For more insights and information on the topic, check out this article on CoinSeeks.com: “Lazarus Group: The Notorious North Korean Hacking Organization”.