North Korean Hackers Launder Crypto Using Sophisticated Techniques, A New Report Suggests

North Korean hackers have hogged headlines for their involvement in cryptocurrency-based crimes in recent times. A recent report has suggested that they use advanced techniques for laundering digital assets.

"Under heavy and sustained pressure from decades of economic sanctions, North Korea has rapidly expanded its illicit activity within the cyber domain," the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) said in its report published in February.

Pyongyang-led cybercrime organization Lazarus Group has transformed from a “rogue team of hackers to a masterful army of cybercriminals and foreign affiliates” that steal hundreds of millions of dollars worth of crypto, the analysis added.

The CNAS recalled that the cybercrime organization swiped around $300 million worth of digital assets in 2020 from the Singapore-based exchange KuCoin.

“This major intrusion included a range of sophisticated hacking and laundering techniques, including a professional mixing service and the use of new DeFi platforms in an attempt to obfuscate the activity.”

While Russia and China captivate the attention of most democratic governments concerned about pending cyber intrusions, "Pyongyang continues to defy miscalculated expectations by successfully employing myriad sophisticated cyberattacks that target new and developing financial technology," the report noted.

The report suggested tightening regulations in the U.S. in order to prevent increasing crypto crimes.

This is not the first time North Korea has been targeted for conducting illicit activities in the cryptocurrency domain.

Another report published in January by blockchain forensics company Chainalysis stated that cybercriminals in North Korea stole Bitcoin and Ether worth almost $400 million but still have millions worth of stolen cryptocurrency funds unlaundered.

The company had also noted that most of the attacks were possibly conducted by the infamous cybercriminal organization the Lazarus Group.