North Korean hacks continue to rise in the crypto sphere after two hacking groups backed by the Asian country drained out $100 million from a California-based crypto firm, according to US prosecutors.
In a statement Monday, the FBI confirmed Lazarus Group and APT38 were responsible for a hack of crypto group Harmony’s Horizon bridge on June 24.
The agency stated on January 13 that the North Korean group relied on a privacy protocol to launder over $60 million worth of ethereum stolen during the June 2022 heist.
The FBI said some of those funds were frozen and identified 11 crypto wallets where the rest of the funds were deposited.
The prosecutors said the agency 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.”
Harmony offered a $1 million bounty for the return of its stolen assets.
Last year, Chainalysis estimated $2 billion in cryptocurrency had been stolen across 13 different cross-chain bridge hacks, amounting to 69% of total funds stolen in the first seven months of 2022.
