North Koreans hackers likely behind $286 million Drift Protocol exploit: Elliptic
The blockchain analytics firm pointed to cross-chain laundering patterns and Solana-specific tracing challenges that mirror prior North Korean state-linked operations.
By Olivier Acuna|Edited by Stephen AlpherUpdated Apr 2, 2026, 2:54 p.m. Published Apr 2, 2026, 2:50 p.m. Make preferred on
What to know:
- Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic says the $285 million exploit of Solana-based Drift Protocol shows multiple hallmarks of North Korean state-sponsored DPRK hackers.
- Elliptic’s analysis points to premeditated, carefully staged onchain behavior and a structured, cross-chain laundering flow that mirrors past DPRK-linked crypto thefts.
- The case underscores how Solana’s fragmented account model and increasingly cross-chain laundering tactics complicate investigations, making entity-level clustering and holistic tracing tools essential.
Elliptic said Thursday the $285 million Drift Protocol exploit, the largest this year, carries “multiple indicators” of North Korea’s state-sponsored DPRK hacker group involvement.
The research firm pointed specifically to onchain behavior, laundering methodologies and network-level signals, all of which align with previous state-linked attacks.
Drift Protocol, whose token has dropped over 40% to roughly $0.06 since the hack, is the largest decentralized perpetual futures exchange on the Solana blockchain.
“If confirmed, this incident would represent the eighteenth DPRK act Elliptic has tracked this year, with over $300 million stolen so far,” the report said.
“It is a continuation of the DPRK’s sustained campaign of large-scale cryptoasset theft, which the U.S. government has linked to the funding of its weapons programs. DPRK-linked actors are believed to be responsible for billions of dollars in cryptoasset theft in recent years,” Elliptic added.
Hours earlier, Arkham data showed that over $250 million had been moved from Drift to an interim wallet, then to various other addresses.
In December, a Chainalysis report revealed DPRK hackers stole a record $2 billion of crypto in 2025, including the $1.4 billion Bybit breach, representing a 51% increase from the previous year. The U.S. Treasury Department last month said North Korea uses the stolen assets to fund the country’s weapons of mass destruction program.
Rather than focusing on the exploit itself, Elliptic’s analysis highlights a familiar operational pattern. The activity appears “premeditated and carefully staged,” with early test transactions and pre-positioned wallets preceding the main event.
The report explains that once executed, funds were rapidly consolidated and swapped, bridged across chains, and converted into more liquid assets, reflecting a structured, repeatable laundering flow designed to obscure origin while maintaining control.
A central challenge, Elliptic notes, is Solana’s account model. Because each asset is held in a separate token account, activity tied to a single actor can appear fragmented across multiple addresses. Without linking these, investigators risk seeing “fragments of the attacker’s activity, not the complete picture.”
This is where Elliptic’s report highlights the clustering approach, which connects token accounts back to a single entity, allowing exposure to be identified regardless of which address is screened. In an incident involving more than a dozen asset types, that entity-level view becomes critical.
The case also emphasizes, Elliptic adds in its report, how laundering has become inherently cross-chain. Funds moved from Solana to Ethereum and beyond, demonstrating the need for what Elliptic described as “holistic cross-chain tracing capabilities.”
HackMore For You
Encryption Supremacy: Zcash and Privacy in the Age of Scale
By CoinDesk ResearchMar 31, 2026
Commissioned byGenZcash
Most crypto privacy models weaken as blockchain data grows. Encryption-based models like Zcash strengthen. CoinDesk Research maps the five privacy approaches and examines the widening gap.
Why it matters:
As blockchain adoption scales, the metadata available to machine learning models scales with it. Obfuscation-based privacy approaches are structurally degrading as a result. This report provides a comprehensive comparison of all five major crypto privacy architectures and a framework for evaluating which models remain durable as AI capabilities improve.
View Full ReportMore For You
SoFi announces 24/7 banking hub that blends traditional cash with crypto
By Helene Braun, AI Boost|Edited by Nikhilesh De3 hours ago
The new service lets companies hold dollars, convert to stablecoins and move money instantly within a regulated bank.
What to know:
- SoFi said it is launching SoFi Big Business Banking, a platform that lets companies manage U.S. dollars and crypto, including stablecoins, within its regulated bank.
- The service aims to replace the current patchwork of banks, stablecoin issuers and custodians by enabling 24/7 deposits, conversions into SoFiUSD and instant movement of...
Oil shock, Iran war risk keep crypto investors on sidelines: Grayscale
1 hour ago
The 'time pain' trap: why bitcoin’s bear market might need a few more months of ‘boring’ to hit a true floor
1 hour ago
CoinDesk 20 performance update: index falls 4.5% as all constituents trade lower
1 hour ago
Coinbase’s AI payments system joins Linux Foundation, gathers support from Google, Stripe, AWS and others
2 hours ago
Startup lets researchers mine blockchain tasks on a quantum computer for the first time
3 hours ago
SoFi announces 24/7 banking hub that blends traditional cash with crypto
3 hours agoTop Stories
Bitcoin, ether, solana slide further as Trump threatens to hit Iran 'extremely hard'
10 hours ago
The bitcoin treasury boom is unwinding as some companies and governments sell holdings
5 hours ago
Solana DeFi platform Drift confirms 'active attack' as $200M+ leaves platform
20 hours ago
Three key signals to watch as bitcoin whipsaws on Trump’s Iran rhetoric
9 hours ago
Bitcoin’s crashes are shrinking, and Wall Street is starting to notice
Apr 1, 2026
