Senior DPRK official slams US for defamation over Binance heist

A senior official of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has condemned the United States for linking a recent cryptocurrency heist involving billions of US dollars at Binance to a hacking group allegedly "supported" by the DPRK, state media reported Tuesday.

In a Monday statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim Yo Jong, department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, called the US claim an attempt to denigrate her country as a "cyber criminal state."

Kim said that the United States has "attempted to spread misunderstanding of the DPRK in the international community, blindly linking the DPRK with the 'cyber crime' incidents whenever they occur on an international scale."

The US moves "to mislead the international public opinion" constitute a grave political provocation against the DPRK and a grave violation of the DPRK's sovereignty by damaging its international image, she said.

Saying her country is closely monitoring the persistent provocations of the United States, the DPRK official added, "We have issues to reconsider in diverse aspects as regards the very unpleasant US hostile attitude."

Binance, the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange, said Friday that hackers stole more than $6 billion in what is believed to be the largest cryptocurrency heist on record.