South Korean police confirmed Thursday (Nov 21) that a cybercriminal group from the North was behind a multimillion-dollar cryptocurrency heist in 2019. In November of that year, cybercriminals targeted South Korean crypto exchange Upbit and stole Ethereum tokens worth some US$50 million.

It is the first time that North Korea's role has been confirmed. In total, 342,000 tokens were stolen and now their worth is estimated to be over a billion dollars.

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Following the attack, South Korea's cyber terror division launched an investigation that ran for years and has now revealed that Lazarus Group and Andariel threat groups related to the North carried out the theft. South Korean police tracked the perpetrators by identifying the cybercriminals' IP addresses and the movement of the virtual assets in collaboration with the FBI, according to authorities.

Earlier in October, law enforcement agencies in South Korea were able to recover tokens worth $470,000 from the cybercriminals by working in tandem with the Swiss authorities, as the stolen currency was stored in the banks of the European country.

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A police statement read, “More than half (57%) of the stolen virtual assets were converted into bitcoin at a discounted rate of 2.5% through three virtual asset exchange platforms believed to have been created by the attackers.” “The remaining assets were distributed and laundered through 51 overseas exchanges,” it added.

Concerns are mounting regarding North Korean cryptocurrency theft as more cases have been unearthed by investigators over the recent years. In 2022, the country’s groups were blamed for the theft of some $620 million worth of ethereum.

According to a report by the United Nations released in March, cryptocurrency theft accounted for half of North Korea’s total revenue. Most of the stolen funds go into funding the Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear programme, as per reports. 
 
(With inputs from agencies)

South Korean police confirmed Thursday (Nov 21) that a cybercriminal group from the North was behind a multimillion-dollar cryptocurrency heist in 2019. In November of that year, cybercriminals targeted South Korean crypto exchange Upbit and stole Ethereum tokens worth some US$50 million.

South Korean police confirmed Thursday (Nov 21) that a cybercriminal group from the North was behind a multimillion-dollar cryptocurrency heist in 2019. In November of that year, cybercriminals targeted South Korean crypto exchange Upbit and stole Ethereum tokens worth some US$50 million. It is the first time that North Korea's role has been confirmed. In total, 342,000 tokens were stolen and now their worth is estimated to be over a billion dollars. Also read: North Korea ratifies historic defence pact with Russia, strengthening military ties Following the attack, South Korea's cyber terror division launched an investigation that ran for years and has now revealed that Lazarus Group and Andariel threat groups related to the North carried out the theft. South Korean police tracked the perpetrators by identifying the cybercriminals' IP addresses and the movement of the virtual assets in collaboration with the FBI, according to authorities. Earlier in October, law enforcement agencies in South Korea were able to recover tokens worth $470,000 from the cybercriminals by working in tandem with the Swiss authorities, as the stolen currency was stored in the banks of the European country. Also read: Putin sends African lion, rare animals to Pyongyang zoo as a ‘gift to the Korean people’ A police statement read, “More than half (57%) of the stolen virtual assets were converted into bitcoin at a discounted rate of 2.5% through three virtual asset exchange platforms believed to have been created by the attackers.” “The remaining assets were distributed and laundered through 51 overseas exchanges,” it added. Concerns are mounting regarding North Korean cryptocurrency theft as more cases have been unearthed by investigators over the recent years. In 2022, the country’s groups were blamed for the theft of some $620 million worth of ethereum. According to a report by the United Nations released in March, cryptocurrency theft accounted for half of North Korea’s total revenue. Most of the stolen funds go into funding the Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear programme, as per reports. (With inputs from agencies)

North Korea-linked groups were behind $50mn cryptocurrency heist in 2019, claims Seoul

Two brothers studying at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) were arrested on Wednesday (May 15) and charged with stealing $25 million worth of cryptocurrency.

Two brothers studying at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) were arrested on Wednesday (May 15) and charged with stealing $25 million worth of cryptocurrency. Authorities said that the brothers- Anton Peraire-Bueno, 24, and James Peraire-Bueno, 28,- carried out a cutting-edge scheme to exploit the Ethereum blockchain's integrity and steal millions of dollars of cryptocurrency, the news agency Reuters reported. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan called the scheme perpetrated by the Bueno brothers "novel" and said the case marked the first time that such a fraud had ever been the subject of US criminal charges. Millions stolen in just 12 seconds The brothers executed their elaborate heist in April last year, stealing $25 million from traders in just 12 seconds by fraudulently gaining access to pending transactions and altering the movement of cryptocurrency, authorities said. Also read | North Korea launders $147.5 million in stolen cryptocurrency, UN experts reveal "As we allege, the defendants' scheme calls the very integrity of the blockchain into question," US Attorney Damian Williams said. Anton was arrested in Boston, while James was arrested in New York. The indictment At MIT, the brothers studied computer science and mathematics and developed the skills and education they relied upon to carry out their fraud, prosecutors said on Wednesday. An indictment charged them with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The indictment alleged that for months, the brothers plotted to manipulate and tamper with the protocols used to validate transactions for inclusion on the Ethereum blockchain. Also watch | US charges two brothers for stealing $25 million worth of cryptocurrency × They did so by exploiting a vulnerability in the code of software called MEV-boost that is used by most Ethereum network "validators," who are responsible for checking that new transactions are valid before they are added to the blockchain, prosecutors said. After the brothers carried out the heist, they rejected requests to return the funds and instead took steps to launder and hide the stolen cryptocurrency. (With inputs from agencies)

Two brothers studying at MIT charged with stealing $25 million worth of cryptocurrency

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