Report: 61% of Stolen Cryptocurrency in 2024 was by Hackers Associated with North Korea

According to a report by Techcrunch, a Chainalysis report released on Thursday showed that this year, the total value of stolen cryptocurrencies surged 21% to reach $2.2 billion, with more than half of the amount being stolen by hacker groups associated with North Korea. In 2024, hackers related to North Korea stole 61% of the total amount stolen that year in 47 cases, valued at $1.34 billion; while in 2023 they stole $660.5 million in 20 cases and $400 million in 2022. This indicates their increasing involvement in these attacks.

The report emphasized that most cryptocurrency hacking incidents this year occurred from January to July, with the stolen amount exceeding $1.58 billion, about 84.4% higher than the same period in 2023. After July, the upward trend significantly slowed down compared to both years before it - possibly due to geopolitical issues. Chainalysis attributed stagnation after July's number of hacker attacks due to an alliance between North Korea and Russia which emerged following a meeting between Russian President Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in June . Since then summit ,the amount of crypto assets stolen by North Korea has decreased by approximately 53%. As cooperation strengthens between Russia and North Korea ,North korea may have changed its cybercrime tactics.