Lazarus Group is Responsible for the World’s Biggest Crypto Theft

On February 21, a group of North Korean Hackers who go by the name of the Lazarus Group pulled off a crypto heist, the likes of which the world has never seen. The hackers were able to successfully steal $1.5 billion of the popular cryptocurrency Ethereum, from a Dubai-based crypto company called Bybit.

Already the group has laundered millions of the stolen funds, and as of today, almost a month after the theft, none of the stolen coins have been retrieved by Bybit.

What happened?

The theft occurred when Bybit moved its digital assets from an Ethereum cold wallet to another location. The hackers had been able to corrupt the storage space that was holding the transferring funds, and re-direct their destination. Meaning that, in minutes, millions of dollars worth of the cryptocurrency had been stolen.

The fact that the hackers could not access the digital assets while they were in the cold wallet is a testament to the security these wallets provide. This best wallet review reveals how cryptocurrency wallets can encrypt information and make funds near impossible for even the most skilled of hackers to gain access to. However, the vulnerabilities the funds face while in transfer, the vulnerabilities that the hackers were able to exploit, show us that not every aspect of the crypto transfer process is as secure as the rest.

The Lazarus Group

The hackers responsible are a well-known North Korea-based criminal group composed of some extremely talented individuals. Experts have suggested that the group must be working around the clock to funnel the money, and many have concerns that the group, which is known to have worked with North Korea’s government, may be directing these funds into the regime’s military development.

Many people have speculated on what the Lazarus Group might look like. The skills they display suggest extremely experienced and talented people, who must be working together to pull off what they have done so effectively. Dr Tom Robinson, the co-founder of crypto investigators Elliptic has, likely begrudgingly, noted that “out of all the criminal actors involved in cryptocurrency, North Korea is the best at laundering crypto.”

Global Effect

A hack on this level is unprecedented, and its consequences have had ripple effects on cryptocurrency across the globe. Ethereum itself experienced a significant drop in value and, even more surprisingly, so did Bitcoin, which until the hack had been experiencing a steady incline for months. Many crypto users withdrew their funds from Bybit, and many more began to question the overall security of crypto exchanges.

However, if there are any positives to arise from the heist, it is the number of experts that have turned their minds to improving the overall security of digital asset transactions. There is also a push to create more security-minded regulations both within the UK and beyond.

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