Security News > 2022 > June > North Korean Hackers Suspected to be Behind $100M Horizon Bridge Hack

North Korean Hackers Suspected to be Behind $100M Horizon Bridge Hack
2022-06-30 22:07

The notorious North Korea-backed hacking collective Lazarus Group is suspected to be behind the recent $100 million altcoin theft from Harmony Horizon Bridge, citing similarities to the Ronin bridge attack in March 2022.

The finding comes as Harmony confirmed that its Horizon Bridge, a platform that allows users to move cryptocurrency across different blockchains, had been breached last week.

The incident involved the exploiter carrying out multiple transactions on June 23 that extracted tokens stored in the bridge and subsequently made away with about $100 million in cryptocurrency.

The company's attribution to the Lazarus Group stems from the threat actor's history of carrying out cryptocurrency thefts, including those targeting cross-chain bridges earlier this year, and the manner in which the funds were stolen and subsequently laundered.

The Horizon Bridge digital heist also arrives against the backdrop of a "Crypto winter" that has witnessed a steep decline in cryptocurrency markets, sending prices of Bitcoin down below $20,000 and potentially risking a key source of income for the sanctions-hit North Korea.

In a related development, Sky Mavis, developers of the popular non-fungible token video game Axie Infinity, announced this week the official restart of the Ronin Bridge following three different audits.


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