North Korea Accused of $290M Crypto Heist as Hackers Continue to Evade Regulation

A record-breaking cryptocurrency theft has sparked accusations of North Korean involvement, highlighting the ongoing struggle to prevent such attacks. The hack, which saw over $290 million stolen, is the largest of the year so far.

Over the weekend, hackers stole more than $290 million in cryptocurrency from Kelp DAO, a protocol that allows users to earn yields on idle crypto investments. By Monday, LayerZero, one of the projects affected by the hack, accused North Korea of carrying out the heist.

The hack is now the largest crypto theft of the year so far, following an earlier hack at crypto exchange Drift in April netted hackers around $285 million. Per its post on X, LayerZero said the hackers exploited Kelp DAO via its LayerZero bridge, which allows different blockchains to send instructions to each other.

The hackers then took advantage of Kelp’s own security configuration, which did not require multiple verifications before approving transactions. That allowed the hackers to siphon off the funds with fraudulent transactions.

In a surprising twist, Kelp DAO responded to LayerZero blaming it for the theft instead. This has led to a heated debate in the crypto community, with some experts questioning the motives behind such accusations.

In the last few years, North Korean hackers working for Kim Jong Un’s regime have become highly successful at stealing crypto. Last year, North Korean hackers stole more than $2 billion in crypto. Overall, since 2017, the total amount of stolen crypto by North Korea is said to be around $6 billion.

The recent hack serves as a stark reminder of the ongoing struggle to prevent such attacks. It also highlights the need for better security measures and more effective regulation in the crypto space.

Key Points:

• The hack saw over $290 million stolen from Kelp DAO, a protocol that allows users to earn yields on idle crypto investments.

• LayerZero accused North Korea of carrying out the heist, citing ‘preliminary indicators’ that point to the country’s hacking group, TraderTraitor.

• Kelp DAO responded to LayerZero blaming it for the theft instead.

• The hack is the largest crypto theft of the year so far, following an earlier hack at crypto exchange Drift in April.

• North Korean hackers have stolen more than $2 billion in crypto last year and around $6 billion since 2017.