North Korean computer thieves have stolen over $1 billion in crypto this year following a massive $351 million hack on exchange Bitget.
A notorious group of hackers from North Korea has now stolen over $1 billion in digital cash in a single year. This mind-boggling total was reached after a massive attack hit the crypto company Bitget, where hackers made off with roughly $351 million in virtual funds.
The giant robbery took place on September 24, 2026, targeting the online payment systems that the platform uses to handle daily transactions for its global customers.
The breach was discovered when automated safety systems noticed huge sums of digital money leaving company accounts without permission.
Instead of stealing secret passwords directly, the clever criminals managed to trick the company’s internal computers into approving automatic money transfers.
The stolen funds were quickly spread across multiple online networks and converted into different digital currencies to make the money harder for authorities to track down and freeze.
To prevent any further loss of funds, Bitget immediately shut down money withdrawals for all its users around the world.
Company leader Gracy Chen took to social media to explain how the attack happened and assured customers that their personal life savings were safe.
She shared that “the attacker compromised a critical backend system within our wallet infrastructure, used it to spoof transaction data, and triggered our authorization process to move funds out.”
She added that “private key compromise has been ruled out,” meaning the hackers tricked the automated system rather than stealing the master keys.
Safety experts and security researchers who track digital crime suspect that the famous Lazarus Group is behind the attack.
This state-sponsored hacking team from North Korea is known for pulling off some of the biggest bank and crypto robberies in history.
See Also: Hackers Steal $351 Million from Popular Crypto Company Bitget
Intelligence agencies say the group steals digital coins to help fund secret government programs and military weapons, bypassing international financial bans.
Bitget has reassured its users that they will not suffer financial loss from this massive robbery. The exchange holds a special safety fund worth over $464 million, which was set up specifically to cover losses from emergency events like this one.
Chen emphasized that “the full amount of this loss falls within the coverage of Bitget’s User Protection Fund.”
This means the company will use its own emergency cash reserves to replace every single dollar that was taken.
Security teams and global police organizations are currently working around the clock to follow the trail of the stolen digital coins across the internet.
While Bitget works to rebuild its computer security barriers, regular users must wait for checks to finish before they can cash out their money again.
About the Author
Jennifer Sakmufuwo Baba is a tech analyst, senior staff, and writer covering artificial intelligence, cybersecurity , and emerging technologies at TechRegard. Based in Nigeria, she's passionate about translating complex tech developments into compelling, accessible stories for diverse audiences. Her work focuses on how technology shapes innovation across Africa and globally.
