North Korean hackers have allegedly stolen hundreds of millions in crypto to fund nuclear programs
The FBI claims North Korea-linked hackers were behind a $100 million crypto heist on the so-called Horizon bridge in 2022.
Budrul Chukrut | Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images
North Korea-linked hackers have stolen hundreds of millions of crypto to fund the regime’s nuclear weapons programs, research shows.
So far this year, from January to Aug. 18, North Korea-affiliated hackers stole $200 million worth of crypto — accounting for over 20% of all stolen crypto this year, according to blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs.
“In recent years, there has been a marked rise in the size and scale of cyber attacks against cryptocurrency-related businesses by North Korea. This has coincided with an apparent acceleration in the country’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs,” said TRM Labs in a June discussion with North Korea experts.
In that discussion, TRM Labs said there has been a pivot away from North Korea’s “traditional revenue-generating activities” — an indication that the regime may be “increasingly turning to cyber attacks to fund its weapons proliferation activity.”
Separately, crypto research company Chainalysis said in a February report that “most experts agree the North Korean government is using these stolen assets to fund its nuclear weapons programs.”
The Permanent Mission of North Korea to the United Nations in New York, a diplomatic mission of the regime to the UN, did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
They need every dollar they can. And this is just obviously a much more efficient way for North Korea to make money.
Nick Carlsen
intelligence analyst, TRM Labs
Since North Korea’s first nuclear test in 2006, the United Nations has slapped multiple sanctions on the reclusive regime — known formally as DPRK, or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea — for its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
The sanctions, which include bans on financial services, minerals, metals and arms, are aimed at limiting North Korea’s access to sources of funding it needs to support its nuclear activities.
Just last month, the FBI warned crypto companies that North Korea-linked hackers are planning to “cash out” $40 million of crypto.
The agency also said in January it continues “to identify and disrupt North Korea’s theft and laundering of virtual currency, which is used to support North Korea’s ballistic missile and Weapons of Mass Destruction programs.”
“They are under pretty serious economic stress with international sanctions. They need every dollar they can. And this is just obviously a much more efficient way for North Korea to make money,” Nick Carlsen, intelligence analyst at blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs, told CNBC.
“Even if that dollar stolen in crypto doesn’t directly go towards the purchase of some component for the nuclear program, it frees up another dollar to support the regime and its programs,” said Carlsen.
North Korean hackers’ exploits
North Korea-affiliated hackers exploit vulnerabilities in the crypto ecosystem in a variety of ways.
Some examples include phishing and supply chain attacks, as well as through infrastructure hacks which involve private key or seed phrase compromises, TRM Labs said in the report.
According to data from Chainalysis, 2022 was the biggest year ever for crypto hacking.
A whopping $3.8 billion was stolen from crypto businesses, primarily from exploiting decentralized finance protocols and by North Korea-linked attackers, said Chainalysis.
In March last year, U.S. officials accused North Korea-linked hackers of stealing a record amount of more than $600 million worth of crypto assets from Ronin Bridge in the popular blockchain game Axie Infinity using stolen private keys — passwords that allow users to access and manage funds.
Hackers exploit what’s known as a blockchain “bridge,” which allows users to transfer their digital assets from one crypto network to another.
Evolving tactics
North Korean-affiliated cybercriminals reportedly posed as recruiters and lured an engineer from blockchain gaming firm Sky Mavis into believing there was a job opportunity, The Wall Street Journal said in June.
The hacker shared a malware-laced document with the victim, enabling the criminals to access the engineer’s computer and steal more than $600 million in crypto after they broke into Sky Mavis’s digital pets game, Axie Infinity.
“They leverage social engineering and they get themselves into the community. They build relationships and gain access to systems,” Erin Plante, vice president of Investigations at Chainalysis, told CNBC.
The U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and South Korea’s authorities has imposed sanctions against several entities and individuals for helping North Korean IT professionals fraudulently obtain employment overseas and launder illicitly obtained funds back to North Korea.
“They target employers located in wealthier countries, utilizing a variety of mainstream and industry-specific freelance contracting, payment, and social media and networking platforms,” said the press release, adding that North Korean IT workers often take on projects that involve virtual currency.
“DPRK IT workers also use virtual currency exchanges and trading platforms to manage digital payments they receive for contract work as well as to launder these illicitly obtained funds back to the DPRK.”
Britt Lower and Adam Scott in “Severance,” now streaming on Apple TV+.
Source: Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is now available on Android devices as the iPhone maker on Wednesday released its video streaming service for Google’s mobile computing platform.
It’s unusual for Apple to release Android apps. The company typically focuses on software for its own iOS and MacOS platforms, but Wednesday’s release is the latest sign that Apple won’t be limiting the growth potential of its Services division by keeping popular services like Apple TV+ exclusive to its own devices.
More people have iPhones than Android phones in the U.S., but globally, Android claims a 72% market share, according to Statcounter. Releasing Android apps significantly expands Apple’s market.
Apple’s Services business is its second largest behind iPhone sales, and Services hit a $100 billion per year revenue rate last year. In addition to subscriptions like iCloud, the unit also includes sales from advertising, search deals with Google, AppleCare warranties and payment fees from Apple Pay.
Apple TV+ is among Apple’s most popular services, and it’s best known for shows like “Ted Lasso” and “Severance.” It also broadcasts Major League Soccer and Major League Baseball games.
The company has never released viewership numbers for Apple TV+, but Nielsen estimates say it accounts for a small fraction of total American TV watching. It costs $10 per month in the U.S. and is included in several bundles alongside iCloud storage, Apple Music and other subscriptions.
Besides a few niche apps, Apple doesn’t have a long track record of making Android apps. Its last significant services app for the Google platform was a decade ago when the company released its Apple Music streaming service for Android.
The Apple TV+ app is available to download through the Google Play app store, and users will be able to pay with their Google accounts. Apple did not disclose a revenue-sharing arrangement with Google, but both companies typically take about 15% of billings from streaming services through their app stores.
Paradromics scientists at work
Source: Paradromics
Texas-based neurotech startup Paradromics on Wednesday announced a strategic partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Neom and said it will establish a Brain-Computer Interface Center of Excellence in the region.
Neom is a developing area within northwest Saudi Arabia that’s touted as “a hub for innovation,” according to its website. The area’s strategic investment arm, the Neom Investment Fund, led the partnership. Paradromics declined to disclose the investment amount.
Paradromics is building a brain-computer interface, or a BCI, which is a system that deciphers brain signals and translates them into commands for external technologies. The company will work with Neom to “advance the development of BCI-based therapies” and set up the “premier center for BCI-based healthcare” in the Middle East and North Africa, it said in a release.
“Working together, we can accelerate the rate of innovation in BCI and expand access to impactful BCI-based therapies.” Paradromics CEO Matt Angle said in a statement.
Paradromics is one of several companies racing to commercialize BCIs, including Elon Musk’s startup Neuralink. Earlier this month, Neuralink announced it has implanted three human patients with its technology, according to a blog post. Precision Neuroscience and Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates-backed Synchron have also implanted their systems in humans.
None of these companies have secured the FDA’s final stamp of approval.
Paradromics’ BCI, the Connexus Direct Data Interface, is an array of tiny electrodes designed to be implanted directly into the brain tissue. The system could eventually help patients with severe paralysis regain their ability to communicate by deciphering their neural signals.
The company is gearing up to launch its first human trial this year, and announced its official patient registry in July. Paradromics’ technology has not yet been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and it still has a long way to go before commercialization. In 2023, the company received the FDA’s Breakthrough Device designation, which aims to help accelerate the go-to-market process.
Watch: Inside Paradromics, the Neuralink competitor hoping to commercialize brain implants before the end of the decade
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