North Korea runs a state programme that recruits top students into crypto heists such as the $6.3 billion Binance hack

Summary

North Korea rewards its top hackers, including those assigned heists such as the Binance crypto hack that netted US$6.3 billion, with perks such as spacious apartments in the capital and large hard-currency awards for long hours of work. Leader Kim Jong-un has built an army of world-class hackers through a programme more than a decade old that picks 200 of the smartest middle school students each year to study computer engineering, according to defectors and analysts.

Timeline

1. South China Morning Post

   7 Nov 2026, 03:01 UTCSource ↗

   North Korea rewards its top hackers, who carry out heists such as the Binance crypto hack that netted US$6.3 billion, with apartments in the capital and large hard-currency awards, and Kim Jong-un's hacker army is built through a programme that picks 200 of the smartest middle school students each year, defectors and analysts say.