North Korean hackers behind $6.3 billion Binance cyberattack, FBI claims

One subject is dominating the world of cybersecurity at present: North Korea's highly secretive and equally dangerous 'hacker army'. According to a report that has just surfaced, Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, suffered a $6.3 billion cyberattack. The FBI and international cybersecurity agencies have claimed that North Korean hackers were behind it.

The whole world is now asking how a financially struggling country like North Korea manages to raid the digital vaults of some of the world's most advanced nations.

This army of North Korean hackers has not appeared overnight. It has been built through a systematic policy over many years. According to Kim Heung-kwang, a former hacker trainer who fled North Korea and defected to South Korea in 2004, North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un attaches as much importance to cyber warfare as to his nuclear weapons.

Every year in North Korea, the 150 to 200 brightest students are selected from school level, that is, from children aged about 11 to 12. They are taught computer science, advanced mathematics, foreign languages and cutting-edge crypto systems at special engineering colleges and the country's leading universities. Like soldiers, they are subjected to strict rules and discipline.

According to a report by South Korea's intelligence service, North Korea currently has more than 8,000 cyber commandos at work. These hackers operate not only inside North Korea but also from China, Russia and other friendly countries. Notorious cyber groups such as the Lazarus Group and TraderTraitor are directly linked to North Korea's military intelligence agency.

The $6.3 billion Binance hack, considered the biggest heist in the crypto world, is regarded as major proof of North Korea's hacking capability. According to the report, North Korean hackers gained entry into an engineer's laptop with the help of a fake job interview and malware (malicious software), and siphoned off billions of dollars within minutes.

The North Korean government regards such hacking campaigns as a great national victory. Successful hackers are given luxury flats in the capital Pyongyang, cash US dollars, permission to travel abroad and an important place in the ruling party. For these hackers, hacking therefore remains not just a job but a contribution to the country.

Many international economic sanctions have been imposed on North Korea. The United States, Britain and other Western countries have consistently alleged that, in these circumstances, North Korea has taken to cyber thefts to run its economy and to fund its missile programmes. Experts have warned that this hacker army could pose an even bigger threat to the global financial system in the coming period.