Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

SecurityWeekSecurityWeek

Cybercrime

US Suspects North Korea in $81 Million Bangladesh Theft: Report

US federal prosecutors suspect the North Korean government directed last year’s theft of $81 million from Bangladesh’s account at the New York Federal Reserve Bank, according to a media report Wednesday.

US federal prosecutors suspect the North Korean government directed last year’s theft of $81 million from Bangladesh’s account at the New York Federal Reserve Bank, according to a media report Wednesday.

Citing unnamed sources, The Wall Street Journal said prosecutors were developing cases showing Chinese middlemen helped the North Korean government orchestrate the enormous theft from the Bangladesh central bank.

In February 2016, thieves transferred the funds from Bangladesh’s account at the New York Fed to accounts in the Philippines using authenticated international bank access codes in the SWIFT system, not by hacking the bank.

North Korea

It was unclear when or if any charges would be filed but any case might implicate North Korea without charging North Korean officials.

The Justice Department and the New York Fed declined to comment on the report.

The New York Fed over the past year has issued several statements, including joint statements with the central bank of Bangladesh and SWIFT, pledging to recover the stolen funds and enhance security of the payments system.

One statement said officials “remain concerned about this event and recommitted to working together to recover the entire proceeds of the fraud as expeditiously as possible, bring the perpetrators to justice in cooperation with law enforcement from other jurisdictions, and lend support to multilateral international efforts to further protect the global financial system from these types of attacks in the future.”

However, the New York Fed did not respond to a request from AFP for comment on the status of the investigation.

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

Researchers at the security firm Symantec previously had linked the theft to a series of cyber-attacks on the US financial system and the 2014 hacking of Sony Pictures.

Related: Bangladesh Heist Exposes Philippine Dirty Money Secrets

RelatedSecond SWIFT Attack Hits Vietnam Bank Showing Links to Sony Hack

Related: 20 Foreigners Linked to $81 Million Bangladesh Bank Heist

Written By

AFP 2023

Click to comment

Trending

Daily Briefing Newsletter

Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Email Briefing to stay informed on the latest threats, trends, and technology, along with insightful columns from industry experts.

Join this event as we dive into threat hunting tools and frameworks, and explore value of threat intelligence data in the defender’s security stack.

Register

Learn how integrating BAS and Automated Penetration Testing empowers security teams to quickly identify and validate threats, enabling prompt response and remediation.

Register

People on the Move

Madhu Gottumukkala has been named Deputy Director of the cybersecurity agency CISA.

Wendi Whitmore has taken the role of Chief Security Intelligence Officer at Palo Alto Networks.

Phil Venables, former CISO of Google Cloud, has joined Ballistic Ventures as a Venture Partner.

More People On The Move

Expert Insights

Daily Briefing Newsletter

Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Email Briefing to stay informed on the latest cybersecurity news, threats, and expert insights. Unsubscribe at any time.