Lazarus Group hackers believed to be affiliated with North Korea’s regime have successfully laundered at least $300 million from their unprecedented $1.5 billion cryptocurrency heist targeting the ByBit exchange. Elliptic’s analysis aligns with ByBit’s findings, which indicate that 20% of the stolen funds approximately $300 million have “gone dark,” meaning they are unlikely to be recovered. As investigators continue their efforts to trace and recover funds from this latest heist, it serves as another stark reminder of North Korea’s growing prowess in cybercrime and cryptocurrency laundering. However, Zhou has declared “war on Lazarus,” launching a bounty program to track and freeze the stolen funds. Dorit Dor from cybersecurity firm Check Point highlighted North Korea’s unique approach: “North Korea is a very closed system and closed economy, so they created a successful industry for hacking and laundering. Robinson added that Lazarus Group likely operates around the clock, using automated tools and working in shifts to convert stolen crypto into cash. The Lazarus Group has shifted its focus in recent years from traditional banking hacks to targeting cryptocurrency platforms, which often lack robust security mechanisms. ByBit CEO Ben Zhou has assured customers that their funds remain safe, with the company replenishing the stolen assets through loans from investors. Despite these efforts, experts remain skeptical about recovering the remaining assets due to Lazarus Group’s expertise in laundering cryptocurrency. The cybercriminals, identified as the infamous Lazarus Group, executed the attack two weeks ago, marking one of the largest crypto thefts in history.
This Cyber News was published on cybersecuritynews.com. Publication date: Mon, 10 Mar 2025 04:50:12 +0000