South Korea Hits 15 North Korea Hackers Linked to $1.34 Billion Crypto Theft in Major Sanction Push

South Korea imposed sanctions on 15 North Korean hackers accused of stealing $1.34 billion in crypto during 2024, targeting funds linked to Pyongyang’s weapons projects.

North Korean Hackers Dominate 2024 Crypto Thefts

Over half of the cryptocurrency space's value stolen in 2024 was attributed to North Korean hackers, who are now being sought by governments worldwide.

The notorious $600 million Ronin network hack and other high-profile Web3 cyber thefts include North Korean hackers, such as the notorious Lazarus Group, as their primary suspects.

Fifteen persons and one affiliated entity from a North Korean IT group have been sanctioned by South Korea, the most recent government to do so.

South Korea Targets North Korea’s Cyber Criminals

In a news release issued on December 26th, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed that the sanctioned individuals had reportedly engaged in "overseas foreign currency-earning activities" to fund the North Korean nuclear missile development program and the DPRK's Munitions Industry Department.

Among the sanctioned persons is Kim Cheol-min of the 313 General Bureau. He is believed to have amassed a "large amount of foreign currency" through covert work for American and Canadian corporations, which he then funneled into Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program.

Sanctioned Individuals Linked to Major Crypto Crimes

Media outlets in South Korea said that on December 11, US senators charged Kim Ryu Song, another sanctioned worker, for breaking US sanctions, money laundering, and identity theft, and for generating more than $88 million in revenue over six years.

Per Cointelegraph, after another successful year for crypto hackers in 2024, when they stole over $2.3 billion worth of crypto, an increase of over 40% from the value stolen in 2023, the sanctions follow.

Over $1.34 Billion Stolen by North Korean Hackers

Some of the greatest dangers to the security of the bitcoin industry now come from hackers with ties to North Korea.

Chainalysis data shows that North Korean hackers stole over $1.34 billion worth of digital assets in 47 separate events in 2024, an increase of nearly 102% from the $660 million lost in 2023.

The entire worth of crypto stolen in 2024 was over $61%, or $1.34 billion, and more than 20% of all hacking instances were of this kind.

But according to Chainalysis, there is cause for concern for 2025 since the number of attacks carried out by North Korean agents is on the rise:

“Notably, attacks between $50 and $100 million, and those above $100 million occurred far more frequently in 2024 than they did in 2023, suggesting that the DPRK is getting better and faster at massive exploits.”

While the average amount of money stolen in North Korean cyberattacks is $50 million, this merely indicates that the size of the attacks is increasing.