The FBI claims cybercriminals linked to the North Korean regime are responsible for an attack on the US-based Harmony Protocol project that caused more than $100 million in damage last year.
On Monday, the FBI released a brief statement that it had recently completed an investigation that confirmed that the well-known North Korean hacker group Lazarus was responsible for the hack. The hack targeted a cryptographic "bridge," a type of mechanism for transferring digital assets that has become a popular target for hackers in recent years. Cointelegraph reports that the attack, which took place last June, exploited a vulnerability in the Ethereum-based Harmony Bridge.
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Officials say that on January 13 this year, the money stolen during the heist (tokens totaling $60 million) was laundered by North Korean hackers into various cryptocurrency wallets using a privacy protocol called "Railgun". Some of these funds were later "frozen" by crypto service providers who monitor the wallets.
Over the years, cybercriminals associated with the Hermit Kingdom have been accused of high-profile attacks on the Web3 project. The researchers say the stolen money is being used by DPKR hackers beyond their own pockets, often through crypto-hacking, to fund government initiatives, including nuclear weapons programs. Last year, there were rumors that the Lazarus Group had hacked the popular crypto project Ronin Bridge. The hackers eventually walked away with over $600 million in assets, making it one of the biggest cryptocurrency heists in history.
The FBI said it continues to work with its law enforcement partners to "detect and stop North Korea's theft and money laundering of virtual currency used to support North Korea's ballistic missile and weapons of mass destruction programs."
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