North Koreas Lazarus Group exposed as the group behind Bybit hack

The North Korean Lazarus Group, a state-sponsored hacking organization, has been identified as the perpetrator of the recent $1.5 billion hack of the cryptocurrency exchange Bybit. This marks the largest cryptocurrency theft ever recorded. The on-chain investigator ZachXBT, along with Josh from ChainFeeds, linked the Bybit attack to a prior attack on the Phemex exchange based on similar wallet addresses, laundering techniques, and exploit methods. Arkham Intelligence confirmed ZachXBT's findings which involved analyzing wallet connections, test transactions, and other on-chain data. Arkham had offered a $32,000 reward for information leading to the identification of the hackers. The Lazarus Group has a history of targeting cryptocurrency companies, including the 2023 WazirX hack ($235 million stolen) and the 2024 Radiant Capital hack ($50 million stolen), using the stolen funds to finance North Korea's missile program.