Crypto exchanges Binance and Huobi have frozen $1.4 million in crypto tied to the Harmony Bridge heist and its alleged North Korean hackers. This was done after crypto tracing firm Elliptic provided intelligence to the two exchanges. The funds were traced back to the $100 million hack of a “bridge” that allowed Harmony blockchain users to move crypto assets between different ecosystems. Binance and Huobi have not yet responded to a request for comment.
North Korea’s infamous hacker wing, the Lazarus Group, is believed to be behind an attack on the Ethereum bridge, which was used to steal hundreds of millions of crypto dollars. The stolen funds were then tracked through Tornado Cash, a privacy-focused mixing service that is believed to be used by North Korean hackers. The US has sanctioned Tornado Cash due to its alleged use by North Korean hackers, and the stolen funds are believed to be used to fund North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. This attack is part of a multi-year campaign by the Lazarus Group to steal crypto funds from exchanges and infrastructure.
