Japan eyes G7 support to thwart North Korea’s crypto-funded weapons programme

Japan will reportedly urge G7 nations to take coordinated action against North Korea’s cryptocurrency thefts at the upcoming summit in Canada.

According to local media, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is expected to raise the issue during the G7 meetings scheduled from June 15 to 17, citing the growing threat of cyber-enabled financial crime linked to North Korea.

The proposal will mark the first time the G7 formally considers a collective response to crypto theft tied to state-sponsored actors. The Group of Seven comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.

Ishiba is expected to call for enhanced cooperation among G7 members to tighten oversight of digital asset markets and curb illicit flows that finance weapons development. Officials believe that cutting off these funding channels is crucial to strengthening non-proliferation efforts and regional security.

One of the catalysts behind Japan’s push is the $307 million hack of DMM Bitcoin, one of the country’s largest crypto exchanges. Japanese police and the FBI linked the May 2023 incident to a North Korean hacking group known as TraderTraitor, also referred to as Jade Sleet and UNC4899.

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Investigations revealed that the attack originated from a social engineering campaign and a malicious Python script, planted after a North Korean operative posing as a recruiter tricked an employee at Ginco, a wallet software provider that serviced DMM Bitcoin.

The malware gave the attackers access to Ginco’s internal systems, which they later exploited to manipulate a transaction request at DMM Bitcoin, leading to the theft.

Over 4,500 BTC, valued at $307 million at the time, was stolen, prompting the exchange to shut down its operations.

Authorities traced the stolen funds to wallets controlled by the TraderTraitor group, a collective previously sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury for engaging in cyberattacks to fund North Korea’s weapons programme.

Beyond Japan, North Korean-linked hackers have been tied to some of the largest crypto-related heists in recent years, including attacks on crypto exchange Bybit, the Ronin Bridge, Harmony, and various other DeFi platforms.

In response, authorities across the globe have stepped up enforcement. The U.S. Department of Justice recently filed a forfeiture action to seize over $7.7 million in crypto assets tied to North Korean IT workers embedded in blockchain firms as part of the DPRK RevGen initiative launched in 2024 to disrupt illicit revenue networks.

Last year, the U.S. and South Korea signed a bilateral agreement to develop joint technologies to combat cryptocurrency theft by enhancing detection and response capabilities against DPRK-linked cyber actors.

Read more: Crypto exchange Kraken flags North Korean infiltration attempt through fake job application

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