The FBI said Friday that it had seized more than US$1.2 billion (NZ$2.1 billion) of cryptocurrency reported stolen last month from Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange.
The theft of about US$6.3 billion (NZ$11.3 billion) from Binance is regarded as the biggest crypto heist in history, and the FBI has previously attributed it to a North Korean hacking group known as TraderTraitor.
The US government and private sector have so far combined to freeze more than US$2.7 billion (NZ$4.8 billion) of the stolen funds, and the Justice Department said Friday that it has now obtained court authorisation to seize or restrain more than US$1.2 billion (NZ$2.1 billion) of that total.
Terror organisations have been using it to transfer funds. (Source: 1News)
Typically in those situations, the US government will file a claim of forfeiture with a judge, who will then determine who has a legitimate claim to the recovered funds.
Also Friday, the FBI blamed North Korea for a separate social engineering scheme that officials say resulted in the theft of US$400 million (NZ$721 million) worth of cryptocurrency over the last 18 months.
That scheme, known as FaceStealer, involves a complicated chain of events combining the hijacking of popular messaging apps and the recording of deepfake videos.
US officials have repeatedly accused North Korea of using cyber schemes to generate funds for its regime, including its illicit weapons program.
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