The South Korean government says it is imposing sanctions on 15 North Koreans who engage in illicit cyber activities to raise funds for their totalitarian state.
In a statement, South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says the individuals – Park Heung-ryong, Yoon Jung-sik, Lee Il-jin, Kim Kyung-il, Kang Hyun-cheol, Kim Cheol-min, Lee Geum-hyung, Kim Ryu-sung, Hwang-cheol, Ahn Il-nam, Seung-cheol-beom, Lee Young-rim, and Park Dong-hyun – have been sanctioned helping fund North Korea’s weapons of mass destruction (WMD) program.
The sanctioned individuals work as IT personnel overseas particularly in China, Russia, Southeast Asia and Africa where they allegedly disguise their identity to work for IT companies or engage in information theft and cyber attacks.
The IT personnel are believed to be working under the 313 General Bureau, a subsidiary of the Ministry of Military and Industry that oversees North Korea’s weapons production, research and development.
South Korea is also sanctioning the Chosun Geumjeong Economic Information Technology Exchange Company, which is said to be involved in dispatching North Korean IT personnel abroad to contribute military funds to the regime.
Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis says North Korean hackers stole $1.34 billion in 2024. A report from the United Nations (UN) Panel of Experts also says cyber plundering covers about 40% of the cost of North Korea’s WMD development.
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