North's ripped off $1B in 2 years, says Mayorkas

North Korea

Published: 19 Oct. 2022, 17:58

North's ripped off $1B in 2 years, says Mayorkas

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas speaks during a news conference during the U.S.-Mexico High-Level Security Dialogue at the State Department on Oct. 13. in Washington. [AP/YONHAP]

North Korea has stolen as much as $1 billion worth of cryptocurrencies and hard currency in the past two years to fund its nuclear program, said the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas at Singapore International Cyber Week (SICW) on Tuesday.

“In the last two years alone, North Korea has largely funded its weapons of mass destruction programs through cyber heists of cryptocurrencies and hard currencies totaling more than $1 billion,” Mayorkas said. “They have perpetrated these cyber heists against entities within countries present today [at the conference], and they have done so with near impunity.”

With international sanctions and Pyongyang’s closing of its borders during the Covid-19 pandemic, the regime appears to have ratcheted up its dealings in cryptocurrencies.

In the past, North Korea focused on narcotics manufacturing and trading, arms sales to anti-Western and non-aligned countries, and counterfeiting U.S. dollars to raise money for its weapons programs.

In his speech, Mayorkas also said Russia, Iran and China were committing cyber crimes with techniques that are getting “more sophisticated and creat[ing] more adverse consequences.”

“It will not surprise anyone that PRC-backed hackers are among the most active groups targeting governments and critical infrastructure this year – including across Southeast Asia,” said Mayorkas, mentioning a China-backed hacking group called APT41.

“[The group] has stolen intellectual property from at least 30 multinational companies in the pharmaceutical, energy, and manufacturing sectors, resulting in hundreds of billions of dollars of lost revenue,” he said.

Mayorkas did not mince words about the dangers of accepting tech and infrastructure services from China.

“Nations must consider what leverage they are giving up and whether they are mortgaging their futures when they reach agreements for critical infrastructure with the PRC,” he said, referring to China by the acronym for its full name, the People’s Republic of China.

He added Washington is working closely with Korea, Israel, Britain, Australia, Singapore and others to counter emerging cyber threats.

According to an FBI report, the United States had over 2,500 ransomware attacks in 2021.

BY ESTHER CHUNG [chung.juhee@joongang.co.kr]