North Korea-Linked Hackers Scale Back Operations Before Launching Largest Crypto Hack in History

North Korean hackers associated with the Lazarus Group may have reduced their cyber operations in the latter part of 2024 as they planned for the largest cryptocurrency hack in history. The crypto industry was shocked by the massive hack on Feb. 21, when Bybit lost more than $1.4 billion to the North Korean group. Despite a surge in attacks earlier in the year, illicit activities linked to North Korean cyber actors significantly decreased after July 1, 2024, according to Chainalysis. The slowdown in crypto hacks by North Korean hackers raised concerns, as suggested by Eric Jardine, Chainalysis cybercrimes research Lead. The decrease in hacking activity may have been due to a reallocation of North Korean resources following a summit with Russia and the conflict in Ukraine, leading up to the Bybit hack in early February.