Lazarus Group: Cybercrime, Crypto Heists, and How to Stay Safe
When you hear about a crypto exchange getting hacked for hundreds of millions, there’s a good chance the Lazarus Group, a North Korean state-sponsored hacking collective known for large-scale cyberattacks on financial systems. Also known as APT38, it’s not some random group of teens in a basement—it’s a well-funded, highly organized cyberwar unit with ties to the Korean People’s Army. Since at least 2014, they’ve targeted banks, exchanges, and blockchain projects across the globe, turning digital wallets into their personal ATMs.
Their favorite targets? Exchanges with weak security, users who skip 2FA, and projects that don’t monitor wallet activity. They’ve stolen over $2 billion in crypto so far—mostly Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins like USDT. In 2022, they hit the Ronin Network for $625 million. In 2024, they were behind the hack of the blockchain gaming platform Axie Infinity’s sidechain. These aren’t random acts—they’re precision strikes, often using phishing, malware, and stolen credentials to slip past defenses. And here’s the scary part: they don’t just steal. They launder. Through mixers, cross-chain swaps, and fake NFT marketplaces, they turn stolen crypto into clean money. That’s why posts on this site cover things like 2FA for cryptocurrency accounts, a critical layer of defense against credential theft, and why we warn against using sketchy exchanges like Exenium, a known scam platform with no regulatory oversight.
You won’t find a single post here that ignores the real-world threat Lazarus Group represents. Whether it’s explaining how gas fees, the cost of moving crypto on Ethereum can be used to trace suspicious transactions, or breaking down how KYVE Network, a decentralized data validation protocol helps secure on-chain records against tampering, every tool and concept covered here ties back to one thing: staying ahead of bad actors. The same goes for understanding systematic risk management, a framework for surviving market-wide attacks, not just individual failures. This isn’t theory—it’s survival.
What you’ll find below isn’t just a list of articles. It’s a practical toolkit. From guides on securing your wallet to reviews of exchanges that actually vet their users, these posts show you how to build defenses that work—not just against random hackers, but against the most dangerous cybercriminals in the world. If you hold crypto, you’re a target. The question isn’t if they’ll come for you. It’s whether you’re ready.
