Digital heists orchestrated by North Korean state-backed hackers have reached unprecedented levels in 2024, with the regime’s cyber army pilfering a staggering $1.34 billion in cryptocurrency. This eye-popping figure represents 61% of all crypto stolen globally this year, marking a dramatic 102.88% increase from the $660.5 million they nabbed in 2023.
North Korean hackers have turned crypto theft into a billion-dollar national industry, eclipsing their previous records with shocking efficiency.
The frequency of attacks has more than doubled, with 47 separate incidents attributed to North Korean actors compared to just 20 last year. It’s like watching a bank robber graduate from hitting local credit unions to simultaneously raiding Fort Knox and the Federal Reserve—in broad daylight, wearing name tags. Investors should stay vigilant against such sophisticated attacks by verifying all communications and safeguarding their digital assets.
Among the most brazen heists was the DMM Bitcoin hack, where North Korean operators made off with 4,502.9 BTC worth approximately $308 million. These hackers initially compromised a Japan-based wallet software firm in March before executing the attack in late May 2024.
This single theft—the largest of 2024—packed such a punch that DMM was forced to announce its closure and secure emergency loans totaling 55 billion yen (about $367 million).
Think of it as the digital equivalent of a smash-and-grab so devastating the jewelry store has to close forever.
Other high-profile victims included Dubai-based Bybit, which reportedly lost nearly $1.5 billion in Ether, and India’s WazirX exchange, which hemorrhaged $235 million. The Bybit breach specifically marked the largest cryptocurrency theft in history according to blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis. The hackers employed the notorious TraderTraitor malware and sophisticated social engineering, often posing as IT workers or recruiters to gain system access.
Once inside, they’ve perfected the art of digital money laundering—rapidly converting stolen Ether to Bitcoin through decentralized exchanges and cross-chain bridges, making the funds nearly impossible to track.
International authorities including the FBI and Japan’s National Police have consistently attributed these attacks to the Lazarus group, North Korea’s premier hacking collective. Since 2017, these state-sponsored cyber criminals have stolen over $3 billion in cryptocurrency, funding a regime that continues to perfect its digital bank-robbing techniques with alarming efficiency.
