North Korea denies being behind record $6.3bn Binance hack

North Korea has rejected allegations that it was responsible for the massive $6.3 billion ransomware attack on cryptocurrency exchange Binance, branding the claims as "absurd rhetoric" and a "sinister attempt" by the United States to tarnish its international image. Kim Yo-jong, a senior official from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and sister of leader Kim Jong Un, stated on Tuesday that the accusations are part of a concerted effort by the US to harm the country's public perception.

The FBI, Secret Service, and cyber analysts have attributed the hack, deemed the largest in history, to North Korea. This claim is supported by blockchain analysts, who identified a state-backed hacking group known as TraderTraitor, also known as the Lazarus Group, as the primary culprit. The FBI has urged industry partners to block transactions involving cryptocurrency accounts affiliated with the group.

Kim Yo-jong, the official in charge of North Korea's General Affairs Department, dismissed the US accusations as another "grave political provocation." She emphasized that the DPRK consistently opposes cybercrimes and firmly opposes any malicious acts in cyberspace. North Korea has a history of systematically developing its cyber capabilities, reportedly by recruiting talented students from universities and placing them in hacker units overseen by the country's intelligence agency.

This latest cyber attack follows a string of incidents linked to North Korea, including a prior $1.5 billion heist of the Bybit exchange in 2023. Pyongyang has consistently denied involvement in these incidents, insisting that they are the result of independent cybercriminal activities.