The Japanese police have determined that the DMM Bitcoin theft incident was carried out by the North Korean hacker organization Lazarus Group.

PANews reported on December 24 that according to CoinDesk Japan, regarding the theft of 4,502.9 BTC from the cryptocurrency exchange DMM Bitcoin that occurred in May, the Japanese National Police Agency announced on December 24 that the incident was perpetrated by Trader Traitor, a hacker group affiliated with the North Korean-based Lazarus Group. The Japanese National Police Agency stated that it will continue to work with the FBI, other U.S. government agencies, and international partners to investigate the illegal activities of North Korean hackers, including cybercrime and cryptocurrency theft incidents.

Meanwhile, the Japanese National Police Agency, the Cabinet Cybersecurity Center, and the Financial Services Agency have issued documents regarding the methods and countermeasures of the attacking groups, urging cryptocurrency-related companies to exercise caution. In response to this attack incident, DMM Bitcoin has decided to close its exchange. Assets and customer accounts will be transferred to SBIVC Trade, with the transition expected to be completed by March 2025.