Hacks stories are surfaced in the crypto universe, and guess who is again under the spotlight? The famous group of North Korean hackers Lazarus Group. This time, it is Bybit who makes the price, with a historic robbery of $ 1.4 billion. Worse still, the investigations reveal disturbing connections between this attack and that which struck Phemex last January. The case takes on an international scale and leaves investors in shock.
Bybit: stolen crypto funds traveling from one hack to another
The surveys carried out by Arkham Intelligence and the on-chain Detective Zachxbt show relentless evidence: The same portfolios are involved in the Hacks of Bybit and Phemex. In summary, hackers have consolidated their loots in the same place Before starting their usual money laundering operation.
Zachxbt even shared an alert on X:
“” Lazarus Group has just connected the Hack of Bybit to that of Phemex directly on-chain by mixing the funds of the two attacks on a common address. »»
The numbers make it vertigo:
- $ 1.4 billion stolen from Bybit, or 70 % of its ETH reserves;
- $ 29 million stolen from Phemex;
- 125 suspicious transactions recorded;
- 11 different blockchains involved.
How do hackers manage to make these digital assets disappear ? They go through crypto mixers like Tornado Cash, making the funds almost intraçable. Bybit has thus become the last episode of a long series of burglaries orchestrated by the North Korean pirates.
Lazarus Group: a prize list of cyber attacks that worries industry
Lazarus Group is not at his first try. The group is already Responsable of some of the biggest crypto flights in historylike the Ronin network hack ($ 600 million) or that of Wazirx ($ 230 million). In 2024, North Korean hackers would have already stolen $ 1.34 billion in digital assets, i.e. an increase of 102 % compared to 2023.
The threat is so serious that the American, Japanese and South Korean governments have published a joint warning.
How does Lazarus proceed? By exploiting Cybersecurity faults Crypto exchange platforms.
In the case of Bybit, the attack is based on a diabolical scheme: A false intelligent contract Who deceived the signatories and compromises a multi-signature Ethereum (ETH) portfolio.
To believe that hackers have more imagination than Hollywood!
With such a record, a question remains: who will be the next victim of this elusive gang? And above all, can crypto exchanges still ensure the safety of their users in the face of these ever more sophisticated attacks?
The CEO of Bybit may ensure that customer funds are safe, difficult to make the extent of the disaster forget. With $ 1.4 billion stolen, this hack enters history and strengthens the place of Lazarus Group as the number one digital public enemy.
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