The U.S. Offers a Reward for Identifying a 'North Korean Agent' Accused of Hacking NASA Data

A 'North Korean military intelligence agent' has been accused of conspiring to hack hospitals, NASA, and U.S. military bases, with the U.S. government offering a $10 million reward for tracking him down; he is reported to have facilitated the theft of over 17 gigabytes of data from NASA. Meanwhile, a joint advisory group from the U.S., South Korea, and the U.K. announced that hackers linked to North Korean intelligence have attacked health, military, and industrial institutions in these three countries, as well as in India and Japan. The individual being pursued by the U.S. government is identified as Rim Jong Hyuk, who is accused of working in North Korea's military intelligence in Pyongyang. The Kansas City prosecutor presented an indictment against Mr. Hyuk on Thursday, August 25, accusing the North Korean citizen of money laundering through a Chinese bank and using the funds to purchase computer servers and finance cyberattacks on defense, technology, and government institutions. The suspect is accused of enabling North Korea's cyberattacks on 17 entities in 11 U.S. states, including NASA and military bases, as well as some defense and energy companies in China, Taiwan, and South Korea. According to the indictment, members of North Korea's intelligence unit had access to NASA's computer system for three months due to Rim Jong Hyuk's actions, extracting over 17 gigabytes of its data. It has been reported that this portion of the hacked data was apparently not classified, but the indictment emphasizes that North Korea was also able to infiltrate the computer systems of defense companies in Michigan and California. Randolph Air Force Base in Texas and Robbins Air Force Base in Georgia were also targets of North Korea's cyberattacks. An FBI agent in Kansas City stated that North Korean hackers aimed to obtain details about fighter jets, missile defense systems, satellite communications, and radar systems. In September 2022, the U.S. offered a $10 million reward for information leading to the identification of three individuals involved in cyberattacks in Iran. The U.S. Department of Justice, which has pursued several hacking cases related to North Korea, has accused suspects such as North Korean computer programmers of attempting to steal and extort over $1.3 billion from banks and international companies, believing that North Korean hackers operate differently from those supported by Russia and China. Alongside the indictment against the suspect believed to be cooperating with the North Korean government, a joint advisory group from the U.S., South Korea, and the U.K. announced that they had identified North Korean hackers who had infiltrated the computers of hospitals, NASA, and military bases and stolen data. Cybersecurity experts from these three countries named the hacking group 'Andaril' or APT45, believing that this group is a subset of the 'General Reconnaissance Bureau' (the official title of North Korea's intelligence agency). These hackers have misled military companies in target countries through phishing methods and infiltrated their internal systems. The three countries emphasize that North Korean state hackers pose a threat to various industrial sectors worldwide, targeting not only the U.S., the U.K., and South Korea but also Japan and India. The FBI, National Security Agency, along with several U.S. cybersecurity entities, the U.K. National Cyber Security Center, and South Korea's National Intelligence Service have been part of the advisory group monitoring and commenting on the activities of North Korean state hackers. The head of the U.K. National Cyber Security Agency stated that global cyber espionage operations show how far North Korean-supported actors have gone in pursuing their nuclear and military programs. The advisory group stressed the need to address issues that allow hackers to infiltrate and protect servers, especially concerning cyber operations related to North Korea. In recent years, the U.S. and some European countries have accused North Korea, Russia, China, and the Islamic Republic of Iran of increasing hacking activities on an international scale. Last September, senior officials from the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI accused three Iranian citizens named Ahmad Khatibi, Amir Hossein Nikayin, and Mansour Ahmadi of using 'ransomware' and 'cyberattacks' against critical U.S. infrastructure and offered a $10 million reward for information about them.