North Korea has already stolen more than $300 million in crypto through hacks and cyber attacks. The country uses these revenues to finance nuclear weapons and other missiles.
More than $300 million in crypto stolen
In recent months, North Korea has stolen more than $300 million worth of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies through hacks and other types of massive cyberattacks. The purpose of the stolen crypto is to fund the country’s illegal nuclear and ballistic missile activities. This is according to a recent report by France24which cites a confidential United Nations file.
Today, that report is confirmed by international investigators, consisting of US and South Korean intelligence officials. They claim that the communist state “stole hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies” to bolster its nuclear weapons arsenal.
In the past 10 days, North Korea’s ballistic missile launches have intensified. Last Wednesday, more than 5 million Japanese civilians were ordered to take urgent cover when North Korea launched a missile over the island of Hokkaido. Military analysts suspect that at least part of this rocket launch was also paid for with stolen cryptocurrency.
North Korea’s Army of Cyber Thieves
North Korea is believed to have thousands of educated hackers who have attacked South Korean companies, organizations and researchers. In addition, it has been accused of using its cyber capabilities for economic rewards.
Newsbit previously reported that the North Korean Security Council Sanctions Panel attributed the Harmony and Ronin Bridge attacks to North Korean cyber organizations such as the Lazarus Group. The commission said Pyongyang’s General Bureau of Reconnaissance immediately authorized the hacks.
The exploitation of the lack of strong crypto safety nets
According to experts, North Korea is using the absence of global legal restrictions on cryptocurrencies to steal Bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies to fund its nuclear weapons and missile projects.
Jason Bartlett, a researcher at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) stated the following in an interview with the VOA Korean Service:
Cryptocurrency offers Pyongyang a new kind of currency that is significantly less regulated and understood by national governments, financial institutions and international organizations.
The commission said such breaches are so lucrative that cybercrime organizations like BlueNoroff are now focusing only on crypto theft to generate revenue. Western countries have accused BlueNoroff of attacking Bangladesh’s national bank in 2016.
Meanwhile reported Nikkei Asiaciting a UN Security Council panel inquiry that North Korea is in the penultimate stage of preparations for a nuclear weapons test. Certain actions indicate excavating an underground tunnel and testing activation mechanisms.