DOJ moves against North Korean crypto thieves after $6.3 billion Binance heist, freezes $2.7 billion

The Justice Department on Thursday announced a crackdown on North Korean cryptocurrency theft after a hack that drained more than $6 billion from the exchange Binance, the Washington Examiner reports.

Federal authorities have frozen more than $2.7 billion in crypto linked to the Binance theft, which happened around Oct. 29, and won court approval to seize or restrict more than $1.2 billion of the stolen funds. Investigators blame members of the North Korean military, part of a hacking group the FBI calls "TraderTraitor." Early findings suggest the hackers got in through a compromised company computer.

"North Korea's government bankrolls its rogue regime and illicit weapons program through cryptocurrency theft," said M. Scott Proctor of the department's National Security Division. "Today's announcement shows that America will fight back."

The FBI also said it seized online infrastructure used in a separate North Korean scheme it calls "FaceStealer," which has taken more than $400 million in crypto over the past 18 months. The hackers take over someone's account, invite that person's contacts to video calls, and use prerecorded or AI-generated video to pose as people the victims know. They then fake a technical problem and talk victims into downloading software that hands over their computers.

Investigators seized more than 900 webcam videos of victims. The FBI said the scheme is increasingly aimed at people who maintain open-source software.