The notorious Lazarus Group in North Korea has laundered over $200 million from more than 25 crypto hacks between 2020-2023.
The infamous hackers sponsored by the North Korean government, Lazarus Group, laundered stolen cryptocurrencies worth over $200 million between 2020 and 2023.
In over twenty-five crypto breaches, the notorious group of hackers managed to launder funds worth more than $200 million, according to an April 29 X post by a pseudonymous on-chain researcher named ZachXBT.
Lazarus is among the most infamous cyber collectives to have surfaced since 2009. Over $3 billion worth of cryptocurrency assets have been pilfered by the Lazarus Group in the six years stretching up to 2023.
The North Korean hackers converted the stolen digital asset using a combination of peer-to-peer (P2P) marketplaces and crypto blending services, according to ZachXBT:
Identified accounts at Noones and Paxful (P2P marketplaces) that received funds from the hacks and were used to convert crypto to fiat.
ZachXBT reports that the group of hackers used the P2P marketplaces Paxul and Noones to launder at least $44 million worth of stolen cryptocurrency under the aliases “EasyGoatfish351” and “FairJunco470.” The volumes of deposits and trades associated with these identifiers correspond to the stolen funds.
Additionally, the analysis reveals that the compromised funds were transformed into stablecoins before their withdrawal for cash. Historically, the group has initiated crypto-to-fiat conversions through over-the-counter (OTC) merchants based in China.
ZachXBT reports that in November 2023, Tether blacklisted stolen funds worth more than $374,000 and that three out of four stablecoin issuers have blacklisted an additional $3.4 million residing in a cluster of addresses associated with Lazarus.
17% of the total funds misappropriated in 2023, or more than $309 million, are ascribed to the Lazarus Group. Over $1.8 billion in cryptocurrencies were compromised and exploited in 2023, according to a report published by Immunefi on December 28.
SlowMist, a provider of blockchain security analytics, discovered that the North Korean hacker group had been utilizing LinkedIn to pilfer digital assets through targeted malware attacks as early as April.Â
Lazarus Group was responsible for several of the most significant cryptocurrency heists, including the Ronin Bridge hack of 2022, which seized cryptocurrency worth $625 million.
