A study by research firm Chainalysis reveals that $2.2 billion (£1.76 billion) worth of cryptocurrencies has been stolen this year, with North Korean hackers responsible for over half of the amount.
Hackers linked to North Korea reportedly stole $1.3 billion in digital assets, more than double their haul from the previous year.
Some of these thefts are believed to involve North Korean operatives posing as remote IT workers to infiltrate cryptocurrency and technology firms, according to the report.
The surge in cryptocurrency theft coincides with the rising price of bitcoin, which has more than doubled this year, amid expectations that incoming U.S. President Donald Trump will adopt a more crypto-friendly stance compared to his predecessor, Joe Biden.
Overall, cryptocurrency theft in 2024 rose by 21% compared to last year, though it remained below the levels recorded in 2021 and 2022.
“The rise in stolen crypto in 2024 underscores the need for the industry to address an increasingly complex and evolving threat landscape.”
It said the majority of crypto stolen this year was due to compromised private keys – which are used to control access to users’ assets on crypto platforms.
“Given that centralised exchanges manage substantial amounts of user funds, the impact of a private key compromise can be devastating”, the study added.
This year, major incidents included the theft of $300 million in bitcoin from Japan’s DMM Bitcoin exchange and the loss of nearly $235 million from India-based crypto exchange WazirX.
The U.S. government has stated that North Korea engages in cryptocurrency theft and other cybercrimes to evade international sanctions and fund its operations.
Last week, a federal court in St. Louis indicted 14 North Koreans for their alleged involvement in a long-running scheme to extort funds from U.S. companies and channel the proceeds into Pyongyang’s weapons programs.
In addition, the U.S. State Department announced a reward of up to $5 million for information regarding the alleged conspiracy.