Who is Lazarus?
South Korea is investigating the alleged involvement of the Lazarus hacking group, which is affiliated with North Korean intelligence, in the theft of cryptocurrency from the Upbit exchange.
The largest digital asset trading platform in the country reported unauthorized withdrawals amounting to 44.5 billion won, or approximately US$30.4 million.
An initial examination by authorities revealed a similar attack pattern to the Upbit hack in 2019, which resulted in losses of 58 billion won and was also linked to Lazarus.
The FBI even classified North Korea's cyber operations as "one of the most sophisticated persistent threats."
An official from the National Police Agency of South Korea confirmed that an investigation has begun but declined to provide further details. The National Intelligence Service has not commented.
