FBI Flags Six Bitcoin Addresses Linked To Notorious North Korean Hacker Group

Updated: 23 August 2023

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The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has identified six Bitcoin wallets linked to a notorious North Korean hacker group.

The digital wallets currently hold 1,580 BTC, worth about $41 million, acquired from several cryptocurrency hacks by the Lazarus Group, the FBI said in an Aug. 22 statement.

FBI Flags Six Bitcoin Wallets Linked to North Korea

The FBI said it believes the group may attempt to cash out of the Bitcoin. The 1,580 BTC is currently held in the following Bitcoin addresses:

3LU8wRu4ZnXP4UM8Yo6kkTiGHM9BubgyiG
39idqitN9tYNmq3wYanwg3MitFB5TZCjWu
3AAUBbKJorvNhEUFhKnep9YTwmZECxE4Nk
3PjNaSeP8GzLjGeu51JR19Q2Lu8W2Te9oc
3NbdrezMzAVVfXv5MTQJn4hWqKhYCTCJoB
34VXKa5upLWVYMXmgid6bFM4BaQXHxSUoL

The agency urged companies operating in the cryptocurrency sector to monitor the six Bitcoin wallet addresses.

Companies operating in the industry should also use blockchain data to track the movement of funds in these addresses.

The FBI said,

Private sector entities should examine the blockchain data associated with these addresses and be vigilant in guarding against transactions directly with, or derived from, the addresses. The FBI will continue to expose and combat the DPRK’s [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] use of illicit activities – including cybercrime and virtual currency theft – to generate revenue for the regime.

FBI: North Korea Responsible For Multiple Crypto Hacks

Lazarus is one of the most notorious state-sponsored hacker groups in North Korea that’s been involved in numerous hacking campaigns in the cryptocurrency industry over the years.

TRM Labs published a recent report saying that North Korean state-sponsored hackers have stolen around $2 billion from the cryptocurrency industry since 2018.

The hackers stole most of this amount, almost $1 billion worth of crypto assets, in 2022 alone.

One of the significant hacking campaigns conducted by the group happened early last year. In March 2022, the Sky Mavis Ronin Bridge was hacked for $625 million. Sky Mavis is the developer behind one of the most popular play-to-earn games, Axie Infinity.

There has been a security breach on the Ronin Network.https://t.co/ktAp9w5qpP

— Ronin (@Ronin_Network) March 29, 2022

The other major exploit in the crypto industry in 2022 was on the Harmony Bridge. After exploiting the blockchain bridge, North Korean hackers stole around $100 million of crypto assets.

One of the primary attacks conducted by North Korean hackers this year was on June 3. The hackers led an attack on Atomic Wallet, where around $100 million worth of crypto assets were stolen from more than 4,100 individual addresses.

The nature of the campaign shows the exploit was conducted through a phishing campaign or supply chain exploit.

In May this year, an official from the White House said that the US federal government was trying to understand how North Korea was operating in the sector.

The official noted that intelligence agencies and the US Treasury Department were working to identify operatives from North Korea.

The report by TRM Labs said that hackers use complex money laundering platforms to hide their stolen funds.

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