North Korean hackers stealing record sums, researchers say
Hackers linked to the North Korean regime have so far stolen more than $2bn (£1.49bn) according to researchers who say 2025 is a record-breaking year for the country's cyber criminals.
The thefts now account for around 13% of the secretive country's gross domestic product (GDP), according to United Nations' estimates.
Western security agencies say these funds are used to finance North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile development programs.
For the last few years operatives from hacking teams like Lazarus Group have focussed on attacking cryptocurrency companies for large thefts of digital tokens.
The worst of these attacks came in February this year when hackers swiped $1.4bn from crypto exchange ByBit.
But the new research from investigators at research firm Elliptic warns the cyber-criminals are also increasingly targeting individuals who hold large amounts of crypto.
High net worth individuals have become increasingly attractive targets as they often lack the security measures employed by businesses, researchers warn.
Dr Tom Robinson, chief scientist at Elliptic, says the targeting of individuals - which is less likely to be disclosed - means the true figure for hacks carried out by North Korea could be even higher.
"Other thefts are likely unreported and remain unknown as attributing cyber thefts to North Korea is not an exact science."
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