According to Cointelegraph: Hacking groups associated with North Korea stole less cryptocurrency in 2023 despite an uptick in the number of their cyber attacks and a diversification of their targets, according to a report by blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis.
Data shows that in 2022, exploits linked to North Korea amounted to the loss of $1.7 billion in cryptocurrency from 15 hacking incidents. In contrast, 2023 saw an estimated theft of $1 billion from 20 hacks. This indicates that although there was an increase in the number of attacks, the monetary value of stolen assets did not surpass that of the previous year.
Erin Plante, Chainalysis' Vice President of Investigations, anticipates that North Korea-associated cyber attacks will continue to sophisticate and diversify. She stated that as security improvements have reduced ill-gotten gains from DeFi protocols, North Korean hackers have diversified, targeting centralized services and wallets.
In 2023, phishing and social engineering emerged as the hackers' favored methods. These are deemed “age-old” techniques that can be mitigated with increasing employee education and awareness about potential cyber threats.
Plante also advised closer network monitoring due to the hackers' pattern of spending more time in networks. For protocols at risk of on-chain vulnerabilities, she recommends implementing systems that monitor on-chain activities. As for off-chain risk platforms, the VP suggests decreasing reliance on centralized products and services.
Despite North Korea's diminished crypto gains in 2023, Plante warns of the continuous threat posed by the country's hackers and their ability to adapt swiftly to exploit opportunities that arise.