North Korea has used cyberattacks and blockchain technology to circumvent economic sanctions and obtain foreign currency, according to a panel of experts reporting to the U.N. Security Council.
Pyongyang has amassed around $670 million in foreign and virtual currency through cyberthefts and used blockchain technology to cover its tracks, the panel told the Security Council’s North Korea sanctions committee, ahead of the council’s annual report, Nikkei has learned.
It is the first time the panel has given details on how North Korea obtains foreign currency through cyberattacks.
In its report, the panel recommended that member states “enhance their ability to facilitate robust information exchange on the cyberattacks by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea with other governments and with their own financial institutions,” to detect and prevent attempts by North Korea to evade sanctions.
The report obtained by Nikkei, which is soon to be formally submitted to the Security Council, says North Korea waged cyberattacks on overseas financial institutions from 2015 to 2018. Economic sanctions imposed on Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile programs have restricted the North’s exports of coal, a key earner of foreign exchange.
The government has stolen money through cyberattacks, creating a pool of illicit funds that has grown since 2016, the panel said. The attacks are believed to be conducted by a specialized corps within the North Korean military and are now an important part of North Korean government policy.
Over 10 million users of Interpark, a South Korean e-commerce site, have had their personal information stolen in cyberattacks. Hackers demanded a total of $2.7 million in ransom in exchange for returning the stolen data.
The South Korean government has determined that the thefts were carried out by the North. The U.N. experts believe the attacks were aimed at obtaining foreign currency.
