Seoul (AFP) – North Korea on Tuesday brushed aside FBI claims that it was behind the record $6.3 billion hack of crypto exchange Binance, and said it fired cruise missiles.
Published on: 03/11/2026 - 02:59
The FBI's formal accusations on Saturday amount to "absurd rhetoric that brings nothing new," blasted the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Kim Yo Jong, in a statement released by the state news agency KCNA.
The United States has already held North Korea responsible for the ByBit hack in February 2025, which at the time represented the biggest computer heist in history with $1.5 billion in loot.
“It is a serious political provocation against the DPRK for the United States to mislead international public opinion as if all cybercrimes committed in different parts of the world were our doing,” said Kim, using the acronym for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's official name.
The American federal police (FBI) have accused the group of North Korean hackers known as TraderTraitor of being behind the looting of Binance, number one in cryptocurrencies by trading volume with its 335 million users.
According to the FBI, it is this same entity that robbed the Bybit platform in 2025.
TraderTraitor is a spearhead of Lazarus Group, a vast cybercrime nebula itself affiliated with North Korean intelligence.
The Lazarus Group became known in 2014 with the hacking of the Sony Pictures studio in retaliation for “The Interview That Kills!”, a satirical film which mocked leader Kim Jong Un.
In Tuesday's statement, Kim Yo Jong denounced "a sinister attempt to damage the international image of the DPRK, to undermine its national dignity and prestige, and a further serious violation of (its) sovereignty."
"It is the consistent policy of the DPRK government to resolutely oppose any malicious acts in cyberspace," she said.
According to a 2020 US Army report, the North Korean cyberwarfare unit, “Bureau 121”, has 6,000 personnel who also operate from abroad, notably from Belarus, China, India, Malaysia and Russia. In 2024, South Korean intelligence estimated the number of these digital soldiers at 8,400.
“Preserve” the bleaching circuits
“The likely reason why the DPRK felt obliged to react is the level of international attention generated by the incident”, the loot from Binance weighing “nearly a quarter of the estimated annual GDP” of North Korea, comments Michael Bosack, founder-director of the Parley Policy Institute and former officer of the United Nations Command in South Korea, for AFP.
“This denial is not just a question of reputation, the North Korean government needs to preserve the available circuits to continue to launder and use this cryptocurrency,” he continues, adding that this major heist risks compromising a possible summit between Kim Jong Un and American President Donald Trump, who has increased his calls.
The day before these official denials, North Korea also tested cruise missiles, KCNA reported.
Unlike ballistic missiles, these projectiles are not under international sanctions, and neighboring South Korea does not systematically announce their launch.
This test firing made it possible to “perfect the ability to conduct a vertical strike against the target by improving the terminal maneuverability of the cruise missile,” according to KCNA.
“The medium-sized dispersal warhead mounted on the cruise missile is capable of reducing an area of five to six hectares to ashes at its maximum power.”
Pyongyang has carried out several tests in recent weeks, from attack drones to torpedoes, hypersonic missiles, including fragmentation weapons.
© 2026 AFP
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