Fenbushi-related wallet compromised, $42M stolen – North Korean hackers at work?

YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) – On Nov 23, Bo Shen, the Founding Partner​​ of Japan-based crypto investing firm Fenbushi Capital, informed his followers of a hack that snatched $42 million from his private wallet.

Assets stolen from Fenbushi chief

According to the executive, the theft included $38 million in USDC, and the hack would in no way affect Fenbushi funds. Additionally, Shen stated that he contacted local law enforcement, saying, “FBI and lawyers both have been involved.”

Civilization and justice will eventually prevail over barbarism and evil. This is the iron law of human society. It’s just a matter of time.

added Shen.

The tweet inspired a heated Twitter debate as to whether Justice is the “iron law of human society” or not. But aside from philosophical musings, the hack reminded of an alarming tendency. US law enforcement has detected North Korean operatives that infiltrated several digital assets and crypto-related companies, carrying out hacks and collecting intelligence.

Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un’s involvement in this particular theft is pure speculation. However, North Korean hackers have targeted Japanese companies in the past.

North Korean intelligence

The tensions between North Korea and Japan have risen lately in the wake of Kim Jong-un testing intercontinental ballistic missiles within Japan’s exclusive economic zone, drawing criticism and international condemnation.

However, North Korea’s plans for regional domination also include collecting intelligence. According to a Bloomberg report in August 2022, fraudsters from North Korea were plundering job listings on LinkedIn. The culprits incorporated details they found on legitimate profiles into their own resumes in order to try getting jobs at US cryptocurrency firms.

Hackers at work in Japan?

Furthermore, Kim Jong-un’s hackers also have a lot of work on their hands. According to Oct 2022 reports from Japanese authorities, the North Korean hacker group Lazarus conducted cyber-attacks targeting Japanese crypto asset companies.

Admittedly, law enforcement agencies rarely identify perpetrators who carry out cyber-attacks from overseas. However, the country involved can be determined through the analysis of viruses and other investigative methods.

This cyber attack group sends phishing emails to employees impersonating executives of the target company, […] pretending to conduct business transactions. […] The cyber-attack group [then] uses the malware as a foothold to gain access to the victim’s network.

commented the report.

In detail, Lazarus has close ties to North Korea’s reconnaissance general bureau, which is its foreign intelligence agency. Also, the hackers might have participated in the WannaCry ransomware attack in 2017, targeting banks and other institutions around the world.

Also read: North Korea Denied US Allegations Of Sending Arms To Russia.

As mentioned, North Korean hackers’ involvement in Bo Shen’s asset theft is pure speculation. However, the country’s claim to the ‘regional throne’ raises a lot of concern among Japanese authorities, which call for international intervention.

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