North Korean-Linked Groups Fuel Crypto Hacks Worth Over $5 Billion

The crypto industry has faced numerous high-profile hacks in recent times, resulting in over $5 billion in losses. According to CoinBureau, these attacks did not occur due to a single line of code being compromised but rather targeted individuals and organizations with social-engineering tactics.

The largest hack was the Bybit incident in February 2025, where hackers manipulated what was displayed on screens of Bybit employees, causing a $1.46 billion loss. The FBI linked this attack to North Korea's TraderTraitor group, which used social engineering and infrastructure-compromise techniques.

Another notable hack occurred at the Ronin Network, where attackers compromised five of nine validator keys and drained $625 million. This hack followed a similar pattern, with initial access gained through a fake job offer sent to an employee.