Biggest year ever for crypto hacking – with North Korea the suspected culprit
2022 was the biggest year ever for cryptocurrency hacking, with more than £3.2bn stolen worldwide, according to new research.
October alone saw £629m taken – the most recorded in a single month.
It helped the overall year dwarf 2021’s previous high of £2.7bn, although the total number of hacks fell slightly.
The annual report by Chainalysis, a blockchain analysis firm which sees its data used by governments, banks, and businesses worldwide, says the activity was largely driven by hackers based in North Korea.
Kim Jong Un’s regime has repeatedly been accused of hacking cryptocurrencies to make money and evade international sanctions, even using stolen digital assets to fund its missile programme.
In 2022, Chainalysis says hackers associated with Pyongyang – notably criminal syndicate Lazarus Group – stole an estimated £1.4bn in cryptocurrency assets, breaking their own record.
Researchers have previously linked the group to the regime, though it is not known whether it is part of the government’s own operations or an external hire.
The amount of crypto thought to have been stolen hugely outweighs North Korea’s total annual exports, which latest figures from the Observatory of Economic Complexity put at £115m for 2020.
“It isn’t a stretch to say that cryptocurrency hacking is a sizable chunk of the nation’s economy,” said Chainalysis.
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What is the main aim of cryptocurrency?
Where was the money stolen from?
The biggest victims of crypto hacks in 2022 were within decentralised finance protocols, which is essentially when investors cut out the middle man – like a bank or exchange – and transfer funds directly between digital wallets.
It’s becoming increasingly popular as it’s considered more transparent, which people are placing more value in following the collapse of major crypto platform FTX.
But according to Chainalysis, these so-called DeFi protocols made up 82.1% of crypto stolen by hackers in 2022, totalling more than £2.5bn.
David Schwed, of blockchain security company Halborn, said DeFi developers should not be afraid of looking to traditional centralised systems for inspiration in making themselves safer to use.
“You don’t need to move as slow as a bank, but you can borrow from what banks do,” he said.
Read more:
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‘Regulate crypto before systemic problem’
UK’s ‘encouraging’ regulation plans
The report comes as the UK government unveils proposals to regulate crypto, as the market seeks to regain the confidence of investors spooked by an exceptionally volatile period.
Under the plans, which would bring the industry more in line with traditional financial systems, crypto platforms would become responsible for defining the demands that a currency must meet before being admitted for trading.
Exchanges will also be held accountable for safely facilitating transactions and keeping customer assets safe.
Jordan Wain, UK public policy lead at Chainalysis, told Sky News the regulation was welcome.
“It is encouraging to see the prominent thread of consumer protection running through these plans, which evidence a clear intent to tackle potentially abusive behaviours,” he said.
But he warned that tougher rules must not harm the industry’s “potential for innovation and growth”.
The proposals, which come less than a year after Rishi Sunak said he wanted the UK to become a “global crypto asset hub”, will go out for consultation before coming into force.
World
Body of missing rabbi Zvi Kogan found in UAE – as Israeli PM says he was murdered in ‘antisemitic terror incident’
The COP29 climate talks have reached a last ditch deal on cash for developing countries, pulling the summit back from the brink of collapse after a group of countries stormed out of a negotiating room earlier.
The slew of deals finally signed off in the small hours of Sunday morning in Azerbaijan includes one that proved hardest of all – one about money.
Eventually the more than 190 countries in Baku agreed a target for richer polluting countries such as the UK, EU and Japan to drum up $300bn a year by 2035 to help poorer nations both curb and adapt to climate change.
It is a far cry from the $1.3trn experts say is needed, and from the $500bn that vulnerable countries like Uganda had said they would be willing to accept.
But in the end they were forced to, knowing they could not afford to live without it, nor wait until next year to try again, when a Donald Trump presidency would make things even harder.
Bolivia’s lead negotiator Diego Pacheco called it an “insult”, while the Marshall Islands’ Tina Stege said it was “not nearly enough, but it’s a start”.
UN climate chief Simon Stiell said: “This new finance goal is an insurance policy for humanity, amid worsening climate impacts hitting every country.
“No country got everything they wanted, and we leave Baku with a mountain of work still to do. So this is no time for victory laps.”
The funding deal was clinched more than 24 hours into overtime, and against what felt like all the odds.
The talks were rocked from the start by the incoming presidency of climate denier Mr Trump, the moment Argentina’s team were recalled back to Buenos Aires by their right-wing president and a controversial letter that sent shockwaves through the United Nations.
Pic: AP
The fraught two weeks of negotiations pitted the anger of developing countries who are footing the bill for more dangerous weather that they did little to cause, against the tight public finances of rich countries.
A relieved Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez, climate envoy for Panama, said there is “light at the end of the tunnel”.
Just hours ago, the talks almost fell apart as furious vulnerable nations stormed out of negotiations in frustration over that elusive funding goal.
They were also angry with oil and gas producing countries, who stood accused of trying to dilute aspects of the deal on cutting fossil fuels.
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Climate-vulnerable nations storm out of talks
The UN talks work on consensus, meaning everyone has to agree for a deal to fly.
A row over how to follow up on last year’s pledge to “transition away from fossil fuels” was left unresolved and punted into next year, following objections from Chile and Switzerland for being too weak.
A draft deal simply “reaffirmed” the commitment but did not dial up the pressure in the way the UK, EU, island states and many others here wanted.
Saudi Arabia fought the hardest against any step forward on cutting fossil fuels, the primary cause of climate change that is intensifying floods, drought and fires around the world.
Governments did manage to strike a deal on carbon markets at COP29, which has been 10 years in the making and will allow countries to trade emissions cuts.
‘Not everything we wanted’
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The UK’s energy secretary, Ed Miliband, said the deal is “not everything we or others wanted”, but described it as a “step forward”.
“It’s a deal that will drive forward the clean energy transition, which is essential for jobs and growth in Britain and for protecting us all against the worsening climate crisis,” he added.
“Today’s agreement sends the signal that the clean energy transition is unstoppable.
“It is the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st century and through our championing of it we can help crowd in private investment.”
Protesters at the summit in Baku. Pic: AP
Read more:
Azerbaijan president hails oil and gas as ‘gift from God’
UN climate summits ‘no longer fit for purpose’
The Azerbaijan team leading COP29 said: “Every hour of the day, we have pulled people together. Every inch of the way, we have pushed for the highest common denominator.
“We have faced geopolitical headwinds and made every effort to be an honest broker for all sides.”
At least 20 people have been killed and 66 injured in Israeli strikes on central Beirut, Lebanese authorities have said.
Lebanon‘s health ministry said the death toll could rise as emergency workers dig through the rubble looking for survivors. DNA tests are being used to identify the victims, the ministry added.
The attack destroyed an eight-storey residential building and badly damaged several others around it in the Basta neighbourhood at 4am (2am UK time) on Saturday.
The central Basta neighbourhood in Beirut
The Israeli military did not warn residents to evacuate before the attack and has not commented on the casualties.
At least four bombs were dropped in the attack – the fourth targeting the city centre this week.
A separate drone strike in the southern port city of Tyre this morning killed two people and injured three, according to the state-run National News Agency.
The victims were Palestinian refugees from the nearby al Rashidieh camp who were out fishing, according to Mohammed Bikai, spokesperson for the Fatah Palestinian faction in the Tyre area.
Israel’s military warned residents today in parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs that they were near Hezbollah facilities, which the army would target in the near future. The warning, posted on X, told people to evacuate at least 500 metres away.
The army said that over the past day it had conducted intelligence-based strikes on Hezbollah targets in Dahiyeh, in Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence. It said it hit several command centres and weapons storage facilities.
Pic: AP
Israel has killed several Hezbollah leaders in air strikes on the capital’s southern suburbs.
Heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah is ongoing in southern Lebanon, as Israeli forces push deeper into the country since launching a major offensive in September.
According to the Lebanese health ministry, at least 3,670 people have been killed in Israeli attacks there, with more than 15,400 wounded.
It has displaced about 1.2 million people – a quarter of Lebanon’s population – while Israel says about 90 soldiers and nearly 50 civilians have been killed in northern Israel.
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‘Dozens’ of Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrike
Meanwhile, six people, including three children and two women, were killed in the southern Gazan city of Khan Younis.
Some 44,176 Palestinians have been killed since the start of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, according to the Gaza health ministry.
The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its count, but it has said that more than half of the fatalities are women and children.
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on 7 October 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking another 250 hostage.
US envoy Amos Hochstein was in the region this week to try to end more than 13 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, ignited last October by the war in Gaza.
Mr Hochstein indicated progress had been made after meetings in Beirut on Tuesday and Wednesday, before going to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defence minister Israel Katz.
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