How the world's largest heist happened
In February 2025, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency exchange, the Dubai-based Bybit, lost $1.5 billion in Ethereum (401,346.769 ETH) to the North Korean state-sponsored hacking collective, Lazarus Group. This unprecedented breach surpassed previous records. Lazarus Group is a hacker organization consisting of an unknown number of individuals, allegedly operated by the North Korean government. Initially a criminal group, it has now been designated as an advanced persistent threat (APT) due to its intent, threat level, and wide array of attack methods. Unlike conventional criminal organizations, Lazarus employs specialized teams with expertise in social engineering, malware development, and blockchain analysis. Their operations blend technical precision with psychological manipulation, often targeting developers and third-party service providers to infiltrate high-value systems. The hack targeted the movement of ETH from a cold wallet to a warm wallet—a type of transaction used t...