🚨 How North Korea Infiltrated the Crypto Industry

An investigation has revealed that North Korean IT workers have infiltrated the crypto industry, posing as developers to secure remote jobs at over a dozen prominent blockchain companies. These undercover operatives were hired by firms including Injective, ZeroLend, Fantom, Sushi, Yearn Finance, and Cosmos Hub—many of which unknowingly employed workers from North Korea (DPRK), violating U.S. and U.N. sanctions.

North Korean IT workers used fake IDs and falsified documents to pass interviews and background checks. Many of these workers were hired for remote roles, often using anonymous methods, which made it easier for them to blend in. They successfully masked their origins, presenting real work histories and GitHub contributions.

Zaki Manian, a blockchain developer, revealed that more than 50% of incoming resumes in the crypto industry may come from DPRK workers. CoinDesk identified over a dozen companies that had unwittingly hired North Korean developers since 2018. Many of these companies, like Cosmos Hub, have publicly acknowledged the issue for the first time through this investigation.

Hiring North Korean workers is illegal under U.N. and U.S. sanctions, but many companies fell victim to elaborate identity fraud. Worse, CoinDesk found links between DPRK IT workers and hacking incidents. For example, Sushi, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, lost $3 million in a 2021 hack linked to these workers.

These IT workers send their earnings back to Pyongyang to support the regime’s nuclear weapons program, with as much as $600 million annually funneled to the regime. The funds were traced back to DPRK government-linked blockchain addresses, according to U.S. authorities and blockchain payment records.

Crazy story, right?
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