Seoul says £962m in digital assets stolen by North Korean hackers

North Korean hackers have stolen an estimated 1.5 trillion won (£962m) in cryptocurrency and other virtual assets in the past five years, more than half of it this year alone, South Korea’s spy agency has said (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service/AP)

North Korean hackers have stolen an estimated 1.5 trillion won (£962 million) in cryptocurrency and other virtual assets in the past five years, more than half of it this year alone, South Korea’s spy agency has said.

Experts and officials say North Korea has turned to crypto hacking and other illicit cyber activities as a source of badly needed foreign currency to support its fragile economy and fund its nuclear programme following harsh UN sanctions and the Covid-19 pandemic.