U.S. blames N. Korean hacking group for 750 billion won theft

The U.S. suspected a North Korean hacker group as the mastermind behind the theft of 700 billion won worth of cryptocurrency tied to an online game. Washington believes that Pyongyang is engaging in illegal hacking in order to earn foreign currency necessary for the development of nuclear weapons. The U.S. Treasury Department included the wallet address linked to the Lazarus group to its sanctions list on Friday (local time), according to the Reuters.

The operator of Axie Infinity, the hacked online crypto game, said a hacking group stole 625 million U.S. dollars in cryptocurrency from the Ronin network, the blockchain network enabling users to exchange cryptocurrency, on March 23. This is the biggest cryptocurrency theft ever.

The U.S. Treasury Department revealed that the cryptocurrency address used by the hackers was under the control of Northjh/ Korean hacking group Lazarus. “The United States is aware that the DPRK has increasingly relied on illicit activitiesㅡincluding cybercrimeㅡto generate revenue for its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs,” a Treasury Department spokesperson said. The Lazarus is believed to be responsible for the 2014 Sony Pictures hack, which produced a film mocking the North Korean regime.


Jae-Dong Yu jarrett@donga.com