Lazarus Group Suspected of Stealing $238 Million in Bitcoin

A recent massive cryptocurrency hack has rocked the community as it culminated in the theft of $238 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC). The alarming news was first brought to light by renowned crypto detective ZachXBT, who shared details of the suspicious transfer on X.

Furthermore, the community questioned the involvement of the notorious Lazarus Group in the theft. The attack targeted an investor who lost over 4,000 BTC in the action.

Hacker steals $238 million in Bitcoin

According to ZachXBT, the victim lost 4,064 BTC, worth approximately $238 million. This theft took place this Monday (19), when a suspicious address (4b277…) coordinated the criminal action.

Shortly after the theft, the hacker made a series of transactions to move the stolen funds between various platforms. The criminal used networks such as ThorChain, eXch, KuCoin, ChangeNow, as well as Railgun and Avalanche Bridge mixers, all to hide the origin of the funds. At the time of writing, the motivation behind the attack remains unknown.

However, there are speculations from the community whether the Lazarus Group, a North Korean cybercriminal organization known for high-profile cryptocurrency hacks, may be involved. However, cryptocurrency detective ZachXBT dismissed these notions.

“Not this time, I think (the behavior is a little different),” the detective explained.

Difficult year

Recently, the Pump Fun scam, a memecoin launchpad on Solana, resulted in losses of nearly $30 million. Furthermore, the first half of 2024 has been challenging for the cryptocurrency industry, which has seen an increase in high-profile attacks and security breaches.

According to data from Peck Shield Alert, losses from cryptocurrency scams and attacks in 2024 have already surpassed $1.5 billion. This is a 293% increase compared to the same period in 2023, when total losses reached $480 million. Of this $1.5 billion, only $319 million has been recovered.

Decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols have been the main targets of hackers, accounting for 59% of the total value stolen. Over 200 incidents have been recorded, affecting more than 20 public blockchains.

Last attacks of 2024

This recent BTC theft isn’t the only significant attack in 2024. Recently, Ronin Network and Nexera were victims of substantial breaches, with $12 million and $3 million stolen, respectively. In Ronin’s case, the platform was able to recover the funds.

Nexera also managed to recover the majority of the stolen funds, with just $400,000 missing. But India-based exchange WazirX lost $230 million worth of assets, including Ethereum (ETH), Shiba Inu (SHIB), PEPE and Polygon (MATIC).

A preliminary report suggested that the breach was likely due to issues with WazirX’s former partner Liminal. However, Liminal has denied these allegations and said that the blame lies with WazirX’s security systems.

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