A series of recent cyber attacks has netted North Korean hackers millions of dollars in virtual currencies like bitcoin, with more attacks expected as international sanctions drive the country to seek new sources of cash, researchers say.
North Korea’s government-backed hackers have been blamed for a rising number of cyber attacks, including the so-called WannaCry cyber attack that crippled hospitals, banks and other companies across the globe this year.
Analysts say the explosive growth in the value of bitcoin makes it and other “cryptocurrencies” an attractive target for North Korea, which has become increasingly isolated under international sanctions imposed over its nuclear weapons and missile programmes.
Bitcoin was trading at over $19,104 per bitcoin at one point on Tuesday, up from less than $1,000 at the beginning of 2017, according to Coinmarketcap.com.
Cristiana Brafman Kittner, principal analyst at the cybersecurity firm FireEye, said she could not confirm whether North Korea had actually stolen any virtual currencies, but said hackers linked to it had targeted “multiple exchanges” over the past six to nine months.
“We believe that some of the criminal activity we are observing originating from North Korea is a result of the regime looking for alternative sources of revenue,” she said.
“North Korean cyber threat actors present an immediate risk to the financial services sector worldwide.”
SINGAPORE/SEOUL, (Reuters)
