North Korean crypto heists amass $600M in 2023

At least $600 million worth of cryptocurrency was stolen by North Korean state-sponsored threat operations in 2023, accounting for nearly one-third of all exfiltrated cryptocurrency assets last year, The Hacker News reports. While such a figure represents a 30% decline from 2022, North Korean cryptocurrency heists continued to be ten times more severe on average than those by other nation-states, according to a report from TRM Labs. Massive cryptocurrency theft operations have been an important source of revenue for North Korea amid heavy sanctions from other nations, with attackers commonly resorting to social engineering attacks to exfiltrate crypto wallets' private keys and seed phrases and proceed with asset transfers to their controlled wallets. Threat actors have also been exploring various money laundering tools amid continuous crackdowns. "With nearly USD 1.5 billion stolen in the past two years alone, North Korea's hacking prowess demands continuous vigilance and innovation from business and governments," said TRM Labs.