The Justice Department unsealed charges Wednesday against three North Koreans accused of conspiring to steal and extort more than $1.3 billion in cash and cryptocurrency from banks and businesses around the world.
The indictment builds upon 2018 charges brought against one of the alleged hackers in connection with the North Korean regime’s 2014 cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment, marking the first time the United States charged a Pyongyang operative.
The latest indictment shows the degree to which North Korea relies on financial cybertheft to obtain hard currency in a country whose main exports are under United Nations and U.S. sanctions, and that is further isolated by a self-imposed coronavirus blockade. The hackers managed to steal at least $190 million, according to prosecutors, who wouldn’t put an exact figure on how much was stolen. They said the North Koreans were unable to get at least $1 billion of the $1.3 billion they targeted, mostly in banks, officials said. Continue reading.