FBI Links North Korea to Massive Binance Crypto Heist
The agency stated that the theft of billions of dollars from the cryptocurrency exchange was orchestrated by North Korean hackers, identifying them as the same group behind a previous major hack.
The FBI has attributed the theft of billions of dollars from Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, to North Korean hackers. The bureau stated Saturday that the massive digital currency heist, which occurred within minutes, was orchestrated by the same entity known as TraderTraitor, responsible for a $1.5 billion hack of the Bybit exchange last year.
The FBI's announcement identified the attack as linked to "malicious cyber activity" by TraderTraitor. The bureau has requested that crypto exchanges and blockchain analytics companies block transactions associated with specific addresses to prevent the laundering of the stolen funds.
According to the FBI's investigation, TraderTraitor primarily converts stolen assets into ethereum. The bureau anticipates that the group will attempt to convert these assets further using decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms and instant swap services. Crypto expert Ari Redbord, chief policy officer at TRM Labs, described the situation as "bank robbery, in this case, at the speed of the Internet," noting that while funds can be tracked in real-time, hackers will likely attempt to launder them through smaller exchanges in a "cat and mouse game."
The theft from Binance, totaling $6.3 billion in bitcoin and other digital currencies, occurred on Thursday. Experts in the cryptocurrency field had previously suggested the attack bore the hallmarks of a North Korean operation. Binance has stated that it has reserves to cover 90% of the missing assets and has pledged to fully reimburse its customers.