All articles tagged with #cryptocurrency theft
In 2025, North Korea's hacking operations stole a record $2.02 billion in cryptocurrency, mainly to fund its military programs, with total stolen crypto reaching around $6.75 billion. The country's hackers, linked to the government, have become the most prolific in the world, exploiting vulnerabilities in crypto exchanges and laundering funds through sophisticated operations, despite international sanctions and security measures.
North Korean hackers have stolen over $2 billion in cryptocurrency this year, primarily targeting high-net-worth individuals, with the total regime-linked crypto theft surpassing $6 billion since 2017, funding North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, according to researchers.
William Duplessie was arrested in connection with the kidnapping and torture of an Italian man, Michael Valentino Teofrasto Carturan, who was held captive in a Manhattan townhouse for nearly three weeks to force him to reveal his Bitcoin wallet password. The case highlights a rising trend of violent attacks targeting crypto investors for ransom, amid increasing concerns over security in the digital currency world.
As the stolen funds from FTX continue to be moved across blockchains in an effort to launder and cash out, cryptocurrency tracing firm Elliptic has released a report suggesting that the thieves may have ties to Russian cybercriminals. The analysis reveals that a portion of the stolen funds ended up in a pool of funds that also included cryptocurrency from Russia-linked ransomware hackers and dark web markets. The thieves have taken steps typical of large-scale crypto heists, exchanging stablecoins for other cryptocurrencies and utilizing mixing services to obscure the money's trail. The movement of funds coincides with the ongoing trial of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, raising questions about potential insider involvement. Cryptocurrency tracing firms TRM Labs and Chainalysis have been hired to aid in the investigation.
Two new Android malware families, CherryBlos and FakeTrade, have been discovered on Google Play. CherryBlos is a cryptocurrency stealer that uses various tactics, including loading fake user interfaces and employing OCR to extract text from images, to steal cryptocurrency credentials and assets. It also acts as a clipboard hijacker for the Binance app, redirecting payments to the attackers' wallets. FakeTrade consists of 31 scam apps that trick users into watching ads, agreeing to premium subscriptions, or topping up in-app wallets without allowing them to cash out. Google has removed the reported malware apps from Google Play, but manual clean-ups may be necessary for infected devices.
UK citizen PlugwalkJoe, aka Joseph James O’Connor, has pled guilty to cyberstalking and other crimes related to the 2020 Twitter hack affecting high-profile accounts, as well as SIM swaps resulting in the theft of $794,000 in crypto. He also took over a TikTok user’s account and targeted the Snapchat account of another high-profile user. O’Connor has agreed to forfeit over $794,000 to the victims of his scams and is set to be sentenced on June 23rd.