The U.S. FBI directly attributed the theft to North Korea on November 1. ”The FBI is releasing information advising the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) was responsible for the theft of more than $6 billion USD in virtual assets from cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, on or about October 29, 2026. The FBI refers to this specific North Korean malicious cyber activity as "TraderTraitor," the agency tweeted . Pyongyang has distanced itself from the hack, describing the U.S. claims as "preposterous nonsense.”
Binance said it had since frozen or intercepted approximately $2.85 billion in compromised assets, while 98% of the affected funds have been replenished.
The tactics resemble previous North Korean-linked campaigns. WaterPlum attackers previously used fake job postings and coding tests to infect more than 30,000 devices across 100 countries, compromising over 7,000 crypto wallets in September. A 2024 campaign that targeted Python developers with fake job offers and malware hidden in code was attributed to the Lazarus group , which was also linked to the $1.5 billion Bybit hack in 2025. Attackers posed as potential employers and sent coding tests containing Base64 obfuscated malware. Running the tests could infect developers' computers, giving attackers remote access.
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Newton Gitonga Freelance Writer Newton Gitonga is a tech journalist covering gadgets, PC hardware, AI, data centers, and the wider tech industry. His interest in technology started early, taking apart things around the house to see how they worked, often to his dad’s frustration. His curiosity sometimes got the better of him, including a few failed attempts to fix laptops, one of them a gifted Dell XPS. He has previously written for Notebookcheck, ZyCrypto, CoinCentral, and Crypto News Flash.
Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/cryptocurrency/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/cryptocurrency/binance-heist-began-with-fake-job-interviews-and-a-malicious-homebrew-download-attackers-used-adulterated-software-and-social-engineering-to-gain-access-to-billions-in-assets#main
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