North Korean Hackers Pose as South Korean Government Officials to Steal Crypto

South Korean law enforcement revealed that hackers from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), also known as North Korea, impersonated government agencies and journalists in South Korea to steal crypto.

The hackers were said to employ email phishing techniques to carry out the dubious act on unsuspecting victims.

DPRK Hackers Reportedly Focused on Stealing Crypto

The South Korean National Police Agency said that North Korean hackers seemed to target people’s crypto assets, stating that the rogue actors stole information from nearly 1,500 victims between March and October 2023, the majority of whom came from the private sector, while about 57 of them were either retired or incumbent government officials.

According to authorities, the attackers posed as officials from the National Health Insurance, the National Pension Service, the South Korean National Police Agency, and the National Tax Service to send phishing emails with clickbait to recipients.

The victim’s computer will be infected with malware if they open the scam email or click on an attached file, which enables the hackers to steal personal data and information.

Furthermore, the police noted that the attackers seized user IDs and profiles belonging to 19 people to gain access to their cryptocurrency trading accounts. While there was no mention of the exact assets that were stolen or their value, South Korean law enforcement said it would double down efforts to combat the illegal cyber activity.

“The police will work closely with relevant institutions and agencies to continuously track down North Korea’s cyber attacks and breaches to prevent losses.”

Lazarus Group’s Crypto Stash Valued at Almost $60 Million

As previously reported by CryptoPotato, North Korean hackers linked to the infamous Lazarus Group were targeting blockchain engineers with a new macOS malware. The hackers used a Python program pretending to be a crypto arbitrage bot to infiltrate their systems.

Lazarus Group is responsible for some of the biggest hacks in the crypto industry, including the attack on CoinEx resulting in the loss of about $55 million.

The DPRK-backed hacking group currently holds nearly $60 million worth of cryptocurrencies, with bitcoin (BTC) making up the majority of the stash valued at $56.15 million. Other crypto holdings include ETH, BNB, BUSD, and AAVE.