A study by cybersecurity vendor, Cyfirma, warned about a massive phishing campaign that will be launched by the North Korean hacker group, Lazarus, on June 21. The campaign will allegedly target six nations and over 5 million businesses and individuals. According to the report published on June 18, Lazarus will subject Singapore, Japan, India, the United Kingdom, South Korea, and the United States to a massive phishing campaign. Hackers will reportedly attempt to take advantage of people receiving payments established by several countries in an attempt to mitigate the COVID-19 crisis. A campaign to collect cryptocurrencies? Lazarus seems to be …

North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, is reportedly backing a group of hackers. Their goal? Stealing cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) using phishing scams. Sources indicate that the country has ramped up these efforts in an attempt to prevent a financial meltdown amid the COVID-19 crisis. A report published on May 13 by the U.K. Mirror claims that the Lazarus group, a hacking syndicate with alleged ties to the North Korean state, could be launching a cybercrime campaign of advanced persistent threat, or APT, attacks. Experts from Seoul-based firm, ESTsecurity, state that Lazarus is “increasingly engaging” in cybercrime activities in and out …

New York-based blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis has launched a new initiative to shed more light on the scope of its latest cryptocurrency crime analyses. Published on May 4, three installments of the firm’s new Crypto Crime Intelligence Briefs provide insights into the mechanisms and routes being used for illicit transactions in the crypto space. In launching its new series, Chainalysis says that while none of the entities analyzed in its new briefs is currently under active investigation, it is releasing the information to support ongoing work by law enforcement, regulators, cybersecurity firms and compliance professionals. Global vectors to keep an …

Coming every Sunday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link. Top Stories This Week Bitcoin rally above $9,000 stalls as sellers push BTC back to key support What a week it’s been. After starting Monday at $7,650, Bitcoin surged through previously stubborn resistance levels to hit highs of $9,440. The gains mean the world’s biggest cryptocurrency has comfortably outpaced the Dow’s price recovery. Bitcoin’s handsome year-to-date returns have also …

North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong-un’s state of health is good, according to an individual associated with the government. Special Representative of the Foreign Ministry Alejandro Cao de Benos de Les Perez told Cointelegraph that Kim Jong-un is in good health on April 28. His remarks contrast with recent reports about the leader's ill health and death. There’s a place for cryptocurrency in North Korea Cao de Benos also told Cointelegraph that, while he cannot confirm the rumors about Jong-un holding significant quantities of Bitcoin (BTC), he believes the cryptocurrency has a role in North Korean society. Earlier this year, …

Following rumors that North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong-Un is either in declining health or dead, reports started circulating that the country’s Bitcoin (BTC) reserves will be sold. According to a March 2019 report, at the time North Korea already held about $670 million in crypto assets. Many believe this non-trivial amount of cryptocurrency to be under Jong-Un’s direct control. Because recent reports have suggested that North Korea’s leader’s life is in danger after a failed heart surgery, many are afraid that the country’s crypto holdings may be sold, causing the price to drop. Note, however, that many experts are …

Blockchain forensics firm CipherTrace has published a detailed analysis of how two Chinese nationals, linked to North Korea, laundered tens of millions of dollars worth of stolen cryptocurrency. The pair are believed to be associated with the shadowy Lazarus Group, which was behind the Sony breach in 2014, the WannaCry ransomware epidemic in 2017, and a $7 million attack on Bithumb (also in 2017). They used ‘peel chains’ to hide the size of deposits to avoid unwanted attention, and doctored photographs to fool KYC verification processes, among other tricks. On March 2, the United States Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets …

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two Chinese nationals accused of laundering cryptocurrency that was stolen in a 2018 crypto exchange hack. At the same time, the Department of Justice announced an indictment for money laundering against the same two individuals. Their activity is linked to Lazarus Group, a hacking group allegedly connected to the North Korean government. OFAC accuses Yinyin Tian and Juiadong Li of assisting “a malicious cyber-enabled activity.” Secretary Steven Mnuchin gave the following statement: “The North Korean regime has continued its widespread campaign of extensive cyber-attacks on financial institutions …

North Korea’s internet use saw a 300% surge over the past three years, as the country’s regime has continued to rely on cryptocurrencies for various activities. Exploitation of crypto and blockchain technology is among the primary tactics for the country to generate revenue as well as transfer and use illicitly obtained funds, a new study says. Titled “How North Korea Revolutionized the Internet as a Tool for Rogue Regimes,” the study was released on Feb. 9 by Insikt Group, an intelligence arm of United States-based cybersecurity firm Recorded Future. The report analyzed North Korean senior leadership’s internet activity between Jan. …

The North Korean hacking team Lazarus Group targeted several crypto exchanges last year, Chainalysis reports. One of the attacks involved the creation of a fake, but realistic trading bot website that was offered to employees of DragonEx exchange. In March 2019 the hackers stole approximately $7 million in various cryptocurrencies from Singapore-based DragonEx exchange. Though a relatively small sum, the hackers went to great lengths to obtain it. The group used a sophisticated phishing attack where they created a realistic website and social media presence for a fake company named WFC Proof. The supposed company had created Worldbit-bot, a trading …

Ethereum developer Virgil Griffith entered a plea of not guilty Thursday afternoon in a Southern District of New York courthouse. Griffith is charged with conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act after traveling to North Korea (DRPK) in April 2019 to attend a cryptocurrency conference. If convicted, Griffth, who once called himself a “disruptive technologist” whose aim was to “make the Internet a better and more interesting place,” could face up to 20 years in prison. He traveled up from Alabama to attend the arraignment and appeared composed throughout, answering with a firm “Innocent” when Judge Castel asked …

Coming every Sunday, Hodler’s Digest will help you track every single important news story that happened this week. The best (and worst) quotes, adoption and regulation highlights, leading coins, predictions and much more — a week on Cointelegraph in one link. Top Stories This Week Bitcoin ready to push above key resistance to hit $10,000 The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has started 2020 fighting. For a time on Friday, Bitcoin hit $9,000 — with analysts claiming there are multiple signs that a “bullish transformation” is underway. This weekend also saw the BTC network’s mean hash rate hit new all-time highs, meaning …