Targeting of Axie Infinity’s Ronin Network
Date of report
  • April 2022
Affiliations
The North Korea–linked Lazarus Group stole more than $600 million worth of cryptocurrency from the Axie Infinity video game. The hackers infiltrated Ronin Network, a decentralized finance platform used to earn and pay for in-game items with cryptocurrency. Lazarus then used a cryptocurrency mixer, Tornado Cash, to launder a portion of the stolen funds to avoid tracing and asset freezes. In response, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control implemented sanctions against the Lazarus Group.
Suspected victims
  • Users of decentralized finance platform Ronin Network
Suspected state sponsor
  • Korea (Democratic People's Republic of)
Type of incident
  • Financial Theft
Target category
  • Private sector
Victim government reaction
  • Yes
Policy response