October 21, 2021
New Rule From US Commerce May Help Limit Spread of North Korean Cybercrime
The U.S. Commerce Department recently announced a new rule barring the export and resale of cyber “intrusion software” and equipment to China and Russia without a proper license from the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). It will apply to any intrusion software, including defensive products, being sold to any Chinese or Russian person regardless of whether they are affiliated with the government or not. Set to come into effect in 90 days, the rule will likely impact the operations of not only Chinese and Russian cybercriminals, but also the North Korean Lazarus Group, which conducts offensive cyber operations against foreign states, often with the assistance of Chinese or Russian groups.
As sanctions tighten in other areas, such as the commodities trade, North Korea continues to compensate for its monetary losses with funds obtained through illicit cyber activity.
While intrusion software is critical for penetration testing, which allows cybersecurity analysts to discover and patch existing system vulnerabilities, malicious actors have leveraged the sale and distribution of such technology to proliferate global cybercrimes. North Korea, in particular, has successfully incorporated cyber-enabled financial crime within its proliferation finance modus operandi for years as it provides an inexpensive and low-risk way to evade U.S. and U.N. economic sanctions. As sanctions tighten in other areas, such as the commodities trade, North Korea continues to compensate for its monetary losses with funds obtained through illicit cyber activity. These money-generating attacks range from basic data breaching tactics such as email phishing to more advanced forms of cyber-enabled financial crime including online bank heists, hacking of cryptocurrency transactions, and distributing ransomware.
Read the full article from The Diplomat.
More from CNAS
-
Oil Prices Reliant on Chinese Demand
Oil fell for a second session as the market weighed a looming glut and the possibility for an end to the war in Gaza. Rachel Ziemba, adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a ...
By Rachel Ziemba
-
Alex Zerden on the Middle East, Crypto, Cartels and Changing U.S. Priorities
At the ACAMS Las Vegas Assembly, Justine sat down with Alex Zerden, adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. Their discussion ranged from U.S. sanction...
By Alex Zerden
-
Indo-Pacific Security / Energy, Economics & Security
Trump Unfriends Modi's India: Trump Frothing, India CalmFrom tariffs to tantrums-Trump's latest anti-India tirade stirs global concern. As Washington watches in disbelief, Shiv Aroor discusses what this "break-up" means for India-U...
By Daniel Silverberg
-
Indo-Pacific Security / Energy, Economics & Security / Technology & National Security
Selling AI Chips Won’t Keep China Hooked on U.S. TechnologyU.S. policy should not rest on the illusion that selling chips can trap China inside the American tech ecosystem....
By Janet Egan