According to a report by Kaspersky Lab, hackers from North Korea continue to target businesses involved in Cryptocurrency transactions.
Specifically, the company stated that it continues to discover attacks that target the staff of cryptocurrency businesses, with the aim of deceiving them into downloading malicious files that will subsequently infect their computers.
Last August, Kaspersky Lab published the Operation AppleJeus report, in which it referred to this issue for the first time.
This report details a series of attacks by the Lazarus group (a code name given to a unit of the North Korean state hackers), which targeted cryptocurrency companies in Asia.
The report also analyzed the first use of Mac malware by North Korean hackers, which appears to have become a de-facto method for an attack.
The latest Kaspersky update shows that the group has not stopped its attacks after the exposure of its activities – something that is not surprising, as North Korean hackers tend to continue their attacks even after their exposure, unlike the Chinese or Russian ones, who usually try to hide their tracks.
Some hacking attempts focus on information gathering and cyber espionage, while others focus purely on stealing monetary amounts from banks or mutual cryptocurrency funds from online exchanges.
A report published earlier this month and prepared by the United Nations committee concluded that North Korean hackers stole about $571 million from at least five cryptocurrency businesses in Asia, between January 2017 and September 2018. The report also claimed that the Pyongyang regime amassed nearly $670 million in foreign and virtual currency through online thefts.
A FireEye report from October 2018 also accused North Korean hackers of conducting bank robberies totaling over $100 million.
Another report published in January of this year claimed that North Korean hackers infiltrated Chile's national ATM network after deceiving an employee into running malicious code during a job interview over Skype.
North Korean hackers, however, do not focus only on stealing money, but continue to engage in information gathering and espionage.
South Korean security researchers report such attacks on South Korean users and government organizations on a daily basis.
Their activities are not limited only to Asia and America. A report published by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz revealed that the North Korean Lazarus group also targeted a private Israeli defense company with the aim of seeking sensitive information.
Despite the fact that it is such a small state and under heavy economic sanctions, North Korea has managed to become one of the most active players in hacking and online espionage and an opponent that certainly should not be ignored.
