North Korean hacker group Lazarus: Switching to new mixer YoMix after Tornado Cash and Sinbad were sanctioned

Bitcoin mixer YoMix has become the preferred choice for laundering stolen cryptocurrencies by the notorious North Korean Lazarus hacking group, Chainalysis said in an annual report. Cryptocurrency money laundering fell to $22.2 billion last year from $31.5 billion in 2022 as mixing services Tornado Cash and Sinbad were sanctioned or shut down. Part of the decline may be attributed to an overall decline in cryptocurrency trading volumes during the 2023 market downturn. However, money laundering activity fell more sharply, reaching 29.5%, while total transaction volume fell by 14.9%. Still, YoMix saw huge growth in 2023, with inflows increasing more than fivefold for the year. Chainalysis said: “About one-third of YoMix inflows come from wallets associated with crypto hackers. The growth of YoMix and the Lazarus Group’s embrace of it is a good example of the sophistication that comes when a previously popular mixing service is shut down. "The actors have the ability to adapt and find alternative mixing services." North Korea-linked hackers have also employed different disguise techniques by using cross-chain bridges to transfer cryptocurrencies between different blockchain networks. (DL News)