The famous US investigative bureau FBI has reported that Lazarus Group can dump $40 million worth of Bitcoin into the market. Today, the Federal Bureau of Investigation identified six heavily loaded wallets linked to the hacker group.
FBI discovers 6 Bitcoin wallets ready for sale: Warns companies
On August 23, the FBI flagged 6 Bitcoin wallets affiliated with the North Korean state-sponsored hacking group Lazarus. These wallets hold 1,580 BTC worth $40 million, which were seized from various hacking attempts last year specifically. These funds are currently under the control of the following Bitcoin addresses.
- 34VXKa5upLWVYMXmgid6bFM4BaQXHxSUoL
- 39idqitN9tYNmq3wYanwg3MitFB5TZCjWu
- 3AAUBbKJorvNhEUFhKnep9YTwmZECxE4Nk
- 3LU8wRu4ZnXP4UM8Yo6kkTiGHM9BubgyiG
- 3NbdrezMzAVVfXv5MTQJn4hWqKhYCTCJoB
- 3PjNaSeP8GzLjGeu51JR19Q2Lu8W2Te9oc
FBI Identifies Cryptocurrency Funds Stolen by DPRKhttps://t.co/QmkwMQtmUn
— FBI (@FBI) August 23, 2023
They can sell
The FBI also warned crypto companies that the movement of funds linked to the Lazarus Group could be a sign that they are looking to sell. The federal investigative agency is asking crypto companies to watch out for six BTC wallets. He recommends using Blockchain data to track any movement of funds. According to the official statement:
Private sector entities should examine the Blockchain data associated with these addresses and be mindful of protecting against transactions made directly with or derived from addresses.
Over the past 24 hours, the FBI has closely watched the movements of hundreds of millions of dollars in stolen cryptocurrency. It is suspected that North Korea, through its operators affiliated with TraderTraitor, may take action to liquidate its staggering $40 million worth of Bitcoin reserves. $40 million in Bitcoin is quite a small amount compared to the daily trading volume of $16 billion. Still, the spread of sales news may be enough to fuel concerns.
Danger of Lazarus Group in Bitcoin market
Meanwhile, the North Korean cybercriminal organization has seized billions of dollars worth of cryptocurrencies over the years. According to a report by TRM Labs, they have stolen nearly $2 billion worth of cryptocurrencies since 2018. They stole $1 billion worth of coins last year alone, becoming the most active criminal organization in 2022.
In 2022, major exploits of DeFi platforms occurred. Lazarus Group has been identified as the group behind the $625 million theft of the Horizon bridge and Ronin Bridge. The Ronin Hack Incident, which we quoted as Kriptokoin.com, had a hard blow to the altcoin market at that time.
Although crypto-related hacking attempts are increasing due to security vulnerabilities on platforms, it is possible to monitor thanks to ledger technology. The FBI and crypto companies cooperated to prevent such crimes, freezing funds. In particular, Huobi and Binance froze $1.4 million in Bitcoin associated with North Korea. Similarly, $63 million in assets associated with the Harmony attack were frozen by crypto exchanges.
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