South Korean Law Enforcement Department North Korean Hackers Posing as South Korean Government Agencies and Journalists Stealing Cryptocurrencies

South Korean Law Enforcement Busts North Korean Hackers Impersonating South Korean Government and Journalists to Steal Cryptocurrencies

Author: Anthonia Isichei, CryptoPotato; Translation: Songxue, LianGuai

South Korean law enforcement agencies revealed that North Korean hackers impersonated South Korean government agencies and journalists to steal cryptocurrency.

It is said that hackers used email phishing techniques to carry out suspicious activities on unsuspecting victims.

North Korean Hackers Focused on Stealing Cryptocurrency

The South Korean National Police Agency stated that North Korean hackers appear to be targeting people’s crypto assets. From March to October 2023, they stole information from nearly 1,500 victims, most of whom were from the private sector, including around 57 retired or current government officials.

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According to authorities, the attackers impersonated officials from the National Health Insurance, National Pension Public Corporation, South Korean National Police Agency, and National Tax Service, and sent phishing emails to the recipients.

If the victims opened the fraudulent emails or clicked on the attachments, their computers would be infected with malware, allowing the hackers to steal personal data and information.

In addition, the police pointed out that the attackers took possession of the user IDs and personal profiles of 19 individuals to access their cryptocurrency trading accounts. Although specific stolen assets and their values were not mentioned, South Korean law enforcement agencies stated that they will double their efforts to combat illegal online activities.

“The police will closely cooperate with relevant agencies and organizations to continuously investigate North Korea’s cyber attacks and illegal activities to prevent losses.”

Lazarus Group Holds Nearly $60 Million in Cryptocurrency

North Korean hackers associated with the notorious Lazarus Group are targeting blockchain engineers with new macOS malware. The hackers use a Python program to impersonate cryptocurrency arbitrage robots to infiltrate their systems.

The Lazarus Group is responsible for some of the biggest hacking attacks in the cryptocurrency industry, including the attack on CoinEx, resulting in a loss of approximately $55 million.

The North Korean-backed hacker organization currently holds nearly $60 million in cryptocurrency, with Bitcoin (BTC) making up the majority, valued at $56.15 million. Other crypto assets include ETH, BNB, BUSD, and AAVE.

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