Once North Korean Hackers Breached MetaMask to Participate in Code Development, No Data or Fund Loss Reported

BlockBeats News, July 19th - MetaMask developer Consensys has discovered that a North Korean hacker had infiltrated the MetaMask team under a false identity and worked for about a month, contributing to the core wallet code development. The individual used the name "Tyler Knapp" and joined as an advisor through a contractor, with a GitHub account under the username imyugioh. The code commits were made from March 9th to April 4th.

Part of the code the hacker was involved in pertained to transfers between crypto assets and fiat currency. Consensys immediately revoked the individual's access upon discovering the risk, instructed staff to pause product releases and avoid contact with the individual, and reported the incident to law enforcement.

Consensys Chief Legal Officer Matt Corva stated that the investigation confirmed no assets or data were misappropriated, no malicious code was deployed, and user funds and security were unaffected. The company is currently reevaluating its contractor background check processes.

TRM Labs noted that developers' work environments have become a key entry point for attackers to obtain crypto company keys and withdrawal approval systems. Previously, an Ethereum-funded project identified 100 suspected North Korean IT professionals among 53 crypto projects.