Crypto News- The Lazarus group, reportedly backed by North Korea, has intensified its utilization of the sanctioned cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash, facilitating the transfer of over $100 million worth of Ethereum within the past week.
Information from blockchain security firm PeckShield reveals that addresses associated with the perpetrators behind the exploits of the Justin Sun-linked HTX exchange and Heco Bridge have moved 40,391 ETH, equivalent to $145.7 million, through this decentralized crypto mixing tool.
A detailed analysis of the funds’ movement illustrates that 18 different addresses were employed to funnel funds into two Tornado Cash addresses.
North Korean Lazarus Group Moves 100 Million Dollars in Ethereum via Sanctioned Mixer
These recent transfers mark the first movement of the stolen funds since their pilferage during the HTX and Heco bridge breaches last November, an incident widely attributed to hackers supported by North Korea.
In a recent report by CryptoSlate, it was highlighted that this North Korea-linked hacker group has returned to using Tornado Cash, following the US government’s crackdown on centralized mixers such as Sinbad.io.
Elliptic, a blockchain analytics firm, underscored that Lazarus’s resurgence on Tornado Cash underscores the challenges authorities face in impeding the operations of decentralized mixers.
According to a report from South Korean news agency Yonhap, citing a UN report, North Korea-affiliated hackers pilfered over $750 million from various cryptocurrency projects last year.
US authorities previously linked the Lazarus group to numerous crypto hacks and breaches, including the $41 million hack of online casino platform Stake and the $100 million stolen from Atomic Wallet.
The cumulative amount purloined by these state-sponsored malevolent actors balloons to approximately $3 billion when examining the period from 2017 to 2023.
The report further suggests that the heavily sanctioned nation leverages these attacks to generate roughly 50% of its foreign currency earnings, purportedly channeling these illicit proceeds into funding its weapons program.
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