North Korea funding missile program through stolen crypto says UN report

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has already barred North Korea from testing ballistic and nuclear-capable missiles, The Independent reported, however, the country has continued to flout these restrictions. Apart from using joint scientific research programs, North Korea has resorted to using cyberattacks to gain technological know-how to advance its programs. 

The report submitted to the UN sanctions committee cited Lazarus Group, a cybercrime unit sponsored by the North Korean state as the perpetrator behind seven major digital attacks, The Independent reported. North Korea has also been accused of illegal cyber activities in 2019 when the UNSC noted that it had made two billion dollars from such activities conducted over three years. 

The UN investigation also follows an independent analysis report released last month that alleged that cybercriminals from North Korea had attacked cryptocurrency exchanges in different parts of the world and siphoned off $400 million worth of digital assets, last year alone. This was a 40 percent jump in the money it stole in the previous year and North Korea laundered the funds out in a sophisticated manner, the report added. 

In addition to cyberattacks, North Korea is also engaging in exporting coal through sea routes, another transgression of the impositions imposed by the UN. While these exports, carried out via sea routes are still at relatively low levels, they have increased in the latter half of 2021. The country is also importing refined petroleum through these routes, Independent reported. 

Last Friday, China and Russia refused to sign a statement that condemned North Korea's aggressive missile launches, the BBC reported. The country's humanitarian situation has continued to worsen, the UN report added.