Earlier this week, the important exchange of South Korean Bitcoin Youbit suffered a Large-scale security breach that resulted in theft of one-fifth of users' funds.

Almost immediately after the hacking attack, Youbit's parent company, Yapian, declared bankruptcy. In an official statement, the Youbit team told its users that 75% of their holdings on the Youbit stock market would be accessible and ready to be withdrawn. But, to claim the remaining funds, the company said investors will have to wait for the final settlement of the bankruptcy proceedings.

In the case of Bitcoin exchange now gone, Mount. Gox, which was once the largest Bitcoin exchange in the global cryptocurrency market, the settlement of bankruptcy proceedings took more than four years. Yet the creditors of Mt. Gox has not received his funds and the procedure is still going on.

Unfortunately, for Youbit investors, it takes several months to several years to receive the remaining 25% of their personal funds, because the settlement of bankruptcy proceedings

Accused of Korea North

In the discovery of hacking attack, the team Youbit informed its customers that the company was working closely with local authorities and the application of the South Korean law to assess and investigate the security breach. The Youbit team said:

"Currently, we are cooperating with law enforcement and third-party investigators to assess the violation.We are trying everything in our ability to minimize the losses of our users and we think of several ways to handle this situation.We would like to apologize again for disappointing our users. "

According to the Wall Street Journal, sources close to Ongoing investigation into Youbit's security breach has discovered telltale and historical signs. In September 2017, security research firm FireEye revealed in a threat research paper that it had found evidence to link various cryptocurrency exchange hacking attacks to Korea. North by analyzing the tools. One of the methods used by the North Korean hacking group was Spear Phishing, according to the FireEye report, which targeted cryptocurrency users with phishing attacks and highly sophisticated malware. FireEye also pointed out that there is evidence to link security breaches of the South Korean cryptocurrency exchange to North Korea.

Specifically, the FireEye team wrote that the following activities were likely initiated by North Korean pirates:

Apr. 22: Four portfolios on the l & # 39; South Korean exchange of Bitcoin Yapizon compromise

Early May: Spear Phishing against a South Korean exchange a.

End of May: two South Korean trade compromised via Spear

Beginning of June: suppliers of cryptocurrency services targeted by hackers

Beginning of July: exchange of three south -coreans targeted via Spear Phishing to a personal account.

Given the imposition of heavy international sanctions against North Korea by the US government and the financial instability of the North Korean regime, FireEye researchers have written that the North Korean pirates have had many incentives targeting South Korean trade. The report read as follows:

"While Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency trading may seem like strange targets for nation-state actors interested in financing the coffers of the 39. State, some of the other illicit attempts of North Korea demonstrate financial crime on behalf of the regime.The office of North Korea 39 is involved in activities such as smuggling gold, counterfeiting foreign currency and even the restaurants. "

The Korean Economic Institute points to a North Korean activity.

Wall Street Journal, Troy Stangarone, a senior director of the Korea Economic Institute, shared a similar sentiment with FireEye and said that North Korea is in an ideal position to target Bitcoin companies because it must find ways to make money. punishments. Stangarone said:

"North Korea is an ideal country to use hacking and financial tools like Bitcoin.They are experimenting ways to recover lost money from sanctions."

In the coming weeks, South Korean law enforcement and cybersecurity agencies should focus on finding reliable evidence. targeted on Youbit to North Korean pirates.