North Korean hackers earn hundreds of millions of $ 1.5 billion bybit hack

Hackers who are thought to be working on North Korean regime have successfully captured at least $ 300m (£ 232m) of their $ 1.5 billion in the cryptocurrencies.

Criminals, known as Lazarus Group, overthrew the large transport of digital signs in a trick in Crypto Exchange Bybit Two weeks ago.

Since then, it has been a cat and mouse game to follow and block hackers from the successful transformation of crying into usable money.

Experts say the infamous hacker team is working nearly 24 hours a day – potentially by putting money into the regime’s military development.

“Minutes minute matters to hackers trying to confuse money traces and they are extremely sophisticated in what they are doing,” says Dr. Tom Robinson, co -founder of elliptic cryptic investigators.

Of all the criminal actors involved in the crypto coin, North Korea is the best in clearing crypts, says Dr. Robinson.

“I imagine they have a whole room of people who do this using automated tools and experience years. We can also see from their activity that they only take a few hours of rest every day, maybe working in shifts to make cryptocurrency turn into money.”

Elliptic analysis with Bybit, who says 20% of funds are now “dark”, means it is unlikely to recover.

The US and the Allies accuse North Koreans of carrying out tens of hacks in recent years to fund the military and nuclear development of the regime.

On February 21, criminals hacked one of Byb’s suppliers to secretly change the digital address of the portfolio that were being sent 401,000 Cryptos Etereum coins.

Bybit thought he was transferring funds to his digital portfolio, but instead sent it to all hackers.

Ben Zhou, CEO of Byb, assured the clients that none of their funds had been received.

The firm has since recharged stolen coins by investors, but is, in Zhou’s words, “Paying the War against Lazarus”.

Byb’s Bounty Lazarus program is encouraging public members to trace stolen funds and raise them where possible.

All cryptocurrency transactions appear in a public blockchain, so it is possible to track the money while moving from Lazarus Group.

If hackers try to use a main cryptocurrency service to prove to turn coins into normal money such as dollars, cryptocurrencies could be raised by the company if they think they are related to crime.

So far 20 people have allocated more than $ 4 million in rewards for successfully identifying the $ 40 million of stolen money and cryptocurrency warning firms to block transfers.

But the experts are weak about the chances that the rest of the funds are recovered, given the North Korean expertise in hacking and money laundering.

“North Korea is a very closed system and a closed economy, so they created a successful industry for revenge and cleaning and they don’t care about the negative impression of internet crime,” said Dr. Dorit by Contrry Control Control Point.

Another problem is that not all cryptocurrencies are so ready to help like others.

Crypto Exchange Exch is being charged by Bybit and others of not stopping criminals from making money.

More than $ 90 million has been successfully accumulated through this exchange.

But over the email with the elusive owner of Exch – Johann Roberts – discussed it.

He admits that they initially did not stop the funds, as his company is in a long dispute with Byb, and he says his team was not sure that the coins were obviously from Hack.

He says he is now cooperating, but argues that the leading companies that identify crypt customers are betraying private benefits and anonymous cryptocurrencies.

North Korea has never agreed to be behind the Lazarus group, but is thought to be the only country in the world using its hacker for financial gain.

Previously, the hackers of the Lazarus group targeted the banks, but in the last five years they have specialized in attacking Cryptocurrency companies.

The industry is less protected with fewer mechanisms in the country to stop them from clearing funds.

The last North Korea -related hacks include:

• Hack 2019 in UPBIT for $ 41 million
• The 275 million dollars of cryptocurrencies by Exchange Kucoin (most funds were found)
• Bridge Ronin Bridge attack of 2022 which saw hackers come out with $ 600 million in cryptocurrencies
• Approximately $ 100m in cryptocurrencies were stolen in an attack on the atomic portfolio in 2023

In 2020, the US added North Koreans accused of being part of the Lazarus group on its most sought after online list. But the chances for individuals to sometimes arrest are extremely few if they do not leave their country.