Google: North Korean technology spy is infiltrating European blockchain companies

BlockBeats News: On April 2nd, according to Cointelegraph, Jamie Collier, an advisor to Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG), released a report today revealing that North Korean technology spies are systematically infiltrating global blockchain companies. After strengthening identity verification in the United States, these personnel have turned to European markets such as the United Kingdom and successfully entered multiple projects including blockchain job search platforms and Anchor smart contract development. Technology fraudsters forge at least 12 European identities and establish a global network of false identities. Blockchain has become a new battlefield for North Korean hackers, with reports showing that these North Korean tech workers have built a massive network of fake identities: forging degrees from Belgrade University in Serbia, using Slovak residential addresses, possessing credentials for European job search website accounts, and being equipped with professional fake passport intermediaries. Even more concerning, since October 2024, there has been a significant increase in related extortion incidents. Dismissed 'employees' may threaten to disclose sensitive data of their former employer, including proprietary project source code. GTIG believes that this reflects North Korea's financial pressure due to US sanctions. Chain detective ZachXBT exposed the North Korean developer network as early as August 2024, and these individuals were paid $500000 per month from "well-known encryption projects". In January 2025, the US Department of Justice sued two North Korean citizens, accusing them of infiltrating 64 US companies through false IT jobs between 2018 and 2024.