WASHINGTON – The Justice Department on Wednesday accused three North Korean programmers of perpetrating a series of cyberattacks aimed primarily at banks and movie studios.
The case against the programmers was built on another case from 2018. The federal prosecutor’s office said the three programmers are members of a North Korean government military intelligence agency.
US authorities blame the North Korean government agency for an international conspiracy that stripped more than $ 1.3 billion in money and cryptocurrencies from various banks and companies.
The attacks were reportedly unleashed after the release of the film “The Interview,” a 2014 Sony Pictures Entertainment film that ridiculed North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The same company Sony, among others, was the target of the attacks.
“As we say in the indictment, North Korean operatives, using keyboards instead of guns, looted cryptocurrency digital wallets and are the world’s largest bank robbers,” said John Demers, Under Secretary of Justice.