North Korea Hacking: Neighbors Say Country's Cyber Attacks Target Finances

Hackers associated with the North Korean government are ramping up their attacks against foreign financial institutions with the intention of stealing money, according to cybersecurity experts.

According to a report from the South Korean Financial Security Institute, an independent body in charge of managing financial security and preventing financial crimes, North Korean hackers have expressed more interest in financial gain than in stealing state secrets or wreaking havoc in the affairs of other nations.

Read: Is North Korea Linked To Bangladesh Bank Heist? FBI May Charge Reclusive Nation In Multimillion-Dollar Theft

The report fingers North Korean hackers for the theft of $81 million from the central bank of Bangladesh. The attack, carried out last year, was believed to have been the work of the Lazarus Group, a collection of hackers in North Korea who previously took credit for the hack of Sony Pictures in 2014 that resulted in personal information and unreleased films to be published online.

Following the successful digital break in at the bank in Bangladesh, security experts were able to identify similar attempts to breach security at banks in Poland. Other reports indicate the nation was planning to carry out more than 100 similar hacking attempts against financial institutions around the world.

The country has also been blamed for a number of cyber attacks that hit South Korean organizations, including financial institutions, in 2013.

North Korea’s efforts to generate money from its cyber exploits extend beyond targeted attacks against banks as well. Security experts have suggested there may be ties between North Korean hackers and the WannaCry ransomware outbreak that hit organizations and individuals around the world in May.

WannaCry hit over one million computers in 150 countries earlier this year, affecting everything from major corporations to hospitals to stop lights. The ransomware, which would encrypt a victim’s files and demand they pay a fee to regain access, shared code with a trojan that was previously used by Lazarus Group.

Read: WannaCry Ransomware: Attack Shares Code With North Korea Malware, Experts say

The WannaCry attack was not particularly successful financially, generating thousands of dollars but falling well short of the heist made by attacking financial institutions directly—though it has been suggested that WannaCry was more a test run than a full blown attack since it included a kill switch.

Regardless, the newfound focus on making money marks a shift in tactics for North Korea. Previously, the country used its cyber attacks to target businesses and governments in hopes of stealing information or creating instability.

The push to create revenue through cyber crimes comes as economic sanctions against North Korea continue to damage the nation’s economy and financial outlook. Countries around the world, including the United States and South Korea, have placed a squeeze on the reclusive country as it has continued to develop its nuclear weapons program.