U.S. officials allege North Korean hackers stole more than $400 million in cryptocurrency using social engineering, malware, and deepfake videos. (Foto: Instagram)
The U.S. government says North Korean hackers stole more than $400 million in cryptocurrency to help fund what it described as Kim Jong-un’s authoritarian regime. The Justice Department disclosed the allegation. The amount is also equivalent to about 2.2 billion Brazilian reais at the direct exchange rate cited in the report.
U.S. officials allege that the hackers used social engineering and artificial intelligence to deceive victims. Investigators say the scheme drew people into virtual meetings using videos from accounts stolen from other individuals.
During the calls, the suspects reportedly recorded footage to use again later. They then claimed there was a technical problem and sent victims a link to fix it. According to the account of the scheme, clicking the link installed malware on victims’ computers that could steal cryptocurrency.
The operation also allegedly used deepfakes—videos altered to make it appear that people said or did things they had not. Investigators say the fabricated images showed influential figures in the cryptocurrency industry, helping make invitations to the calls appear trustworthy. The Justice Department said it had seized cloud-storage infrastructure used by the suspects and announced coordinated actions targeting North Korean hackers.
Earlier in November, the FBI made a similar accusation against North Korea, saying its hackers were responsible for the largest attack in cryptocurrency-industry history. The target was Binance, described as the sector’s largest exchange, which reportedly lost $6.3 billion, or about 34 billion Brazilian reais, in the attack. North Korea’s government denied involvement and called the allegation “absurd and nothing new.”
