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All three are now charged with fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, and the use of cryptocurrency-related malware.
One of the specific charges concerns an attempt to steal $ 81 million from a bank in Bangladesh.
The United States also believes it was involved in the Wannacry hacker attack in 2017. The attack affected more than 150 countries around the world with a ransomware virus that, among other things, paralyzed the computer systems of several hospitals.
Assistant Attorney General John Demers, who heads the Division of National Security, now calls North Korea a “flagged crime syndicate.”
– North Korean agents use keyboards instead of weapons to steal digital wallets with cryptocurrencies instead of bags of money. They are the world’s leading bank robbers, says Demers.
– Has stolen billions
According to the BBC, North Korea has likely raised more than $ 1 billion through hacks.
This is the first time that US authorities have prosecuted those they believe to be hackers operating on behalf of North Korea.
The Wannacry ransomware virus devastated more than 150 countries in 2017. Both the United States and the United Kingdom believe North Korea was behind it.
Photo: AP
The US Justice Department believes the defendants work for North Korea’s military intelligence agency.
All three are probably in North Korea, which does not extradite its citizens.
However, the United States has obtained a 37-year-old Canadian-American man, who is said to have admitted to laundering money for the group on at least one occasion.
– Participated in revenge attacks against Sony
One of the defendants, Park Jin Hyok, was also charged two years ago for participating in the Sony Entertainment Pictures hack in 2014.
The attack is said to have been an act of revenge after Sony released the movie “The Interview,” which harasses Kim Jong-un.
The comedy “The Interview” is about an assassination attempt on Kim Jong-un, and it set minds on fire in North Korea.
Photo: Marcus Ingram / AFP
All three are said to have purposefully worked with defense and energy-related contractors and suppliers in the United States.
Employees of both the State Department and the Pentagon are said to have been tricked into providing login information.
“This is one of the longest and most complex cyber intelligence investigations the ministry has ever conducted,” Demers said, according to ABC.
