Hacking Different Ways: Experts Reveal North Korea’s Role in Building and Stealing DeFi Projects

Recent security reports revealed that North Korea-linked technologists were involved in developing some of the most prominent decentralized finance protocols during DeFi Summer 2020, highlighting a long history of hacking in the space.

Cybersecurity researcher Tyler Monahan said that these people are not fictional, but have real experience in blockchain development and have actually participated in the construction of well-known projects such as “SushiSwap”, “THORChain”, “Yearn”, “Harmony”, “Ankr” and even “Shiba Inu”.

She noted that some teams, such as Yearn, are able to mitigate risk thanks to their reliance on rigorous vetting and strict security methods.

It also warns of the development of methods by these parties, which may now utilize non-Korean intermediaries for some operations, including direct communications, which increases the difficulty of detecting them.

It is estimated that these networks may have withdrawn at least $6.7 billion from the cryptocurrency space.

Previous data confirms that North Korea has become the biggest threat in the field of cryptocurrency-related crime, with its hackers stealing more than $2 billion in 2025 alone, accounting for the vast majority of recorded hacking operations.

These groups rely on sophisticated tactics to first infiltrate companies through technical functions and then use this access to conduct significant hacking operations.

Once money is stolen, it is broken down into smaller transactions and laundered using advanced tools such as network bridges and cloaking services.

Reports also reveal the use of sophisticated fraud methods, such as fake calls via Zoom or Teams, during which victims are tricked into downloading malware that gives attackers full access to their devices and accounts.

In recent incidents, these groups have been implicated in hacking attacks against large companies, where hacked employee devices were exploited to access internal systems and steal assets.

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