North Korean hackers steal $6.3B from Binance in ‘largest bank heist in human history’ - New York Post

Cybercriminals swiped the digital coins out of Binance wallets within a mere 20 minutes starting at 4:30 p.m. ET Thursday, exploiting the system by hacking into an engineer's laptop, according to analytics firm TRM Labs and industry insiders. Binance initially said the security incident may have involved a compromised laptop.

In an update Friday, Richard Teng, co-CEO of Binance, said the company's security team has 'uncovered additional points of breach,' suggesting it was a complex attack carried out by more than one person. The culprits targeted just a few accounts, including one crypto wallet holding nearly $800 million.

Elite hackers

TraderTraitor, the North Korean hacking group suspected of the crime, is known for pulling off unparalleled lootings by using algorithms to spread the riches across global crypto networks faster than any human could – making them virtually impossible to recover. US officials have said cybercrime attacks fund roughly half of North Korea's missile program.

Exchange response

Binance said Friday it has started to recover some of the stolen assets. About $2.8 billion was quickly frozen by stablecoin providers – but roughly $3 billion is likely gone forever, as it was unable to be frozen, according to analytics firms. The crypto exchange added that it's on track to allow customers to make withdrawals within two days and that it has set over $6 billion of company funds aside to cover customers' losses.

Meanwhile, co-CEO Changpeng Zhao tried to stop Tesla and SpaceX billionaire Elon Musk from adding to the chaos online, telling him that it's a 'bad time to troll.' Musk posted several laughing- and grimacing-face emojis on X, his social-media platform, reacting to the news.

Market impact

Bitcoin dropped below $80,000 for the first time in a month, ether fell to a two-month low of $2,230 and crypto-related stocks plummeted as the hack served as a stunning reminder that the crypto industry still remains a largely unregulated Wild West. Ari Redbord, global head of policy at TRM Labs, also called it the 'largest bank heist in human history.'

Binance said it is working with law enforcement, including the Secret Service; blockchain intelligence firms; token issuers; and other exchanges to trace and recover the stolen funds, promising to do everything possible to 'ensure that these bad actors will be held accountable.' Crypto and law enforcement officials are now in a 'cat and mouse game' against the North Korean hackers, racing to recover the stolen crypto before it's turned into fiat currency and hidden forever.