UN: North Korea used stolen cryptocurrencies to advance its nuclear weapons programme
North Korea has managed to upgrade its nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, financing them with funds stolen in cyberattacks. The attacks were mainly aimed at financial institutions and cryptocurrency platforms, writes Associated Press citing UN experts.
According to their report, the total amount of digital assets stolen by North Korean hackers from 2019 to November 2020 amounts to more than $316 million.
According to UN experts, North Korea-linked cyber criminals’ attacks target “virtual assets and virtual asset service providers, as well as defence companies”.
Experts say that North Korea continues to launder stolen cryptocurrency, largely through Chinese OTC platforms.
The stolen funds are believed to be directed toward modernising weapons. The UN noted that recently at a military parade the North Korean authorities unveiled new ballistic missile systems and announced the development of tactical nuclear weapons.
UN analysts also said they are investigating the large-scale hacker attack on a cryptocurrency exchange in September 2020. It appears to be the KuCoin hack. Experts suggest that North Korean hackers could be behind the attack.
The UN proposes expanding sanctions against North Korea.
Earlier in 2019, the UN said that North Korea attacked major cryptocurrency exchanges to obtain foreign currency and thereby ease the impact of sanctions. Analysts said that through these attacks North Korea stole about $2 billion.
North Korea denied the accusations.
In 2020, experts said North Korea used cryptocurrency worth about $1.5 billion to finance international trade and supply chains circumventing sanctions.
According to US Army data, more than 6,000 hackers operate worldwide under North Korea’s leadership.
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