North Korean hackers stole over $2 billion in crypto so far in 2025, researchers say | TechCrunch

""The actual figure may be even higher. Attributing cyber thefts to North Korea is not an exact science," reads the blog post."

""We are aware of many other thefts that share some of the hallmarks of North Korea-linked activity but lack sufficient evidence to be definitively attributed. Other thefts are likely unreported and remain unknown," said Elliptic."

""The majority of the hacks in 2025 have been perpetrated through social engineering attacks, where hackers deceive or manipulate individuals in order to gain access to cryptocurrency," read the blog post. "This marks a shift from earlier attacks where in many cases technical flaws in crypto infrastructure were exploited to steal funds. This shift highlights that the weak point in cryptocurrency security is increasingly human, rather than technical.""

Blockchain analysis firm Elliptic estimates that North Korean government-linked hackers have stolen more than $2 billion in cryptocurrency so far this year, based on over 30 hacks. The reported total is the largest annual amount on record with three months remaining and surpasses the 2022 record of $1.35 billion. The regime's cumulative crypto thefts since 2017 total at least $6 billion, a figure that may be underestimated due to attribution challenges and unreported incidents. Primary targets include cryptocurrency exchanges and increasing attacks on high-net-worth individuals, with a shift toward social engineering methods that exploit human weaknesses.

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