FBI Says North Korea Responsible For $100M Harmony Protocol Crypto Hack

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Photo: Alexander Khitrov (Shutterstock)

The FBI says cybercriminals linked to the North Korean regime are responsible for an attack on US-based crypto project Harmony Protocol that resulted in losses of more than $100 million last year.

On Monday, the FBI released a brief statement explaining that it had recently completed an investigation confirming that the well-known North Korean hacker group known as Lazarus was responsible for the hack. The hack involved the targeting of a cryptographic bridge, a kind of mechanism for transferring digital assets that have become common targets for hackers in recent years. The attack, which took place last June, exploited security vulnerabilities within the Harmonys Ethereum-based bridge, Cointelgraph reports.

Officials say that on January 13 this year, the money stolen in the heist ($60 million in tokens) was laundered by North Korean hackers into various crypto wallets using a privacy protocol known as Railgun. . Some of these funds were then frozen by the crypto service providers controlling the wallets.

For years, cybercriminals connected to the Hermit Kingdom have been blamed for large-scale hacks on Web3 projects. Researchers say DPKR hackers don’t just line their pockets, but frequently use money stolen from crypto hacks to help fund the regime’s initiatives, including its nuclear weapons program. Last year, the Lazarus Group also allegedly compromised the Ronin Bridge, a popular crypto project. Hackers eventually seized over $600 million in assets, making it one of the biggest crypto heists in history.

The FBI says it continues to work with its law enforcement partners to identify and disrupt the theft and laundering of virtual currency by North Korea, which is used to support North Korean missile programs. ballistic weapons and weapons of mass destruction.

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