FBI Issues Cybersecurity Warning Saying North Korean Hackers Are Targeting Cryptocurrency

The US authorities claim that the hacking tactics has been used "by a North Korean state-sponsored advanced persistent threat group since at least 2020", who are targeting "cryptocurrency technology firms, gaming companies, and exchanges" in an attempt to steal crypto.

The FBI, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Treasury issued a joint advisory on Monday, warning about "malicious" cyber threats from Pyongyang. According to it, the North Korean hackers are attempting to "generate and launder funds" for their state.

"The US government has observed North Korean cyber actors targeting a variety of organisations in the blockchain technology and cryptocurrency industry, including cryptocurrency exchanges, decentralised finance (DeFi) protocols, play-to-earn cryptocurrency video games, cryptocurrency trading companies, venture capital funds investing in cryptocurrency, and individual holders of large amounts of cryptocurrency or valuable non-fungible tokens (NFTs)", the advisory states.

The authorities noted that the hackers use communication platforms to "encourage individuals to download trojanised cryptocurrency applications and thus enable fraudulent blockchain transactions.

The advisory lists several groups as advanced persistent threat, including Lazarus Group, APT38, BlueNoroff, and Stardust Chollima.

The authorities addressed the cybersecurity issues after a string of hacking attacks, which culminated in a major cryptocurrency heist earlier this year. The Lazarus Group was blamed for the attack, when the hackers stole $620 mln.