And this is neither a coincidence nor just media bias. Here’s a structured and clear analysis.
1. An economic model based on circumventing sanctions
For years, the United Nations has been imposing strict economic sanctions on North Korea.
The country has developed alternative funding sources, including:
cybercrime
theft of crypto assets
attacks on Web3 platforms
Crypto is perfect for them:
no bank
fast transactions
hard to block internationally
🧠 2. Highly structured hacker groups
The most well-known group is: 👉 Lazarus Group
This group is suspected of being directly linked to the North Korean state.
Their modus operandi:
bridge attacks (e.g., Ronin Network)
targeted phishing on Web3 employees
malware in crypto projects
exploitation of smart contract vulnerabilities
Notable example:
The Ronin hack (2022) → +$600 million stolen
3. Crypto as a strategic funding tool
According to several reports (notably from Chainalysis):
North Korea is one of the largest crypto thieves in the world
Billions of dollars are believed to have been siphoned in recent years
Presumed objectives:
to fund the nuclear program
bypass the international financial system
maintain the regime
4. Why them more than other countries?
It's not that other countries don't conduct cyberattacks — but North Korea ticks several unique boxes:
State centralization
The attacks are often coordinated by the state, not just isolated hackers.
Intensive training
The country is massively investing in:
IT training
cyber military units
Low risk for them
no extradition
geopolitical anonymity
few direct consequences
5. The key role of traceability tools
Even though crypto is pseudo-anonymous, it is traceable.
Companies like:
Elliptic
Chainalysis
allowing them to:
recover stolen flows
identify patterns
attribute certain attacks to Lazarus
So this is not an 'offhand' accusation, but often based on:
technical signatures
attack methods
known wallet addresses
6. A reality... but also a bias to nuance
One must remain clear-headed
Yes, North Korea is heavily involved
BUT:
not all hacks come from them
some are attributed by correlation, not absolute proof
other groups (Russia, independent cybercriminals) are also active
Conclusion (strategic angle)
North Korea uses crypto as:
> an asymmetric economic weapon
In a world where:
sanctions block traditional circuits
finance becomes digital
Web3 vulnerabilities are still numerous
crypto attacks become a leverage of power.
Strong idea
"Crypto is not just a financial tool…
it has also become a field of invisible geopolitical warfare.