[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] A South Korean court has upheld a prison sentence against a cryptocurrency exchange operator who leaked military secrets after receiving instructions from an individual believed to be a North Korean hacker.

According to the legal community on the 28th, the Supreme Court’s Third Division (Presiding Justice Lee Sook-yeon) recently finalized a ruling sentencing Lee, 42, to four years in prison and four years of suspension of qualifications for violating the National Security Act, including espionage-related charges.

Lee was accused of approaching an active-duty military officer under the direction of a North Korean hacker, known by the Telegram alias “Boris,” and inducing him to leak classified military information. The court confirmed that in July 2021, Lee received instructions from the hacker to recruit an active-duty officer capable of accessing military secrets.

Lee subsequently contacted Captain Kim, 33, via Telegram, offering cryptocurrency in exchange for classified information. As part of the operation, Lee sent Kim a watch-type hidden camera, which Kim later brought into a military facility.

Investigators found that Lee also connected a USB-type hacking device known as a “Poison Tap” to a laptop, enabling the hacker to remotely program it. Through this scheme, Kim provided sensitive information, including login credentials for the Korean Joint Command and Control System (KJCCS), to both Lee and the hacker. However, the actual hacking attempt was ultimately unsuccessful.

Lee also attempted to recruit another active-duty officer by offering financial compensation in exchange for military organizational data, but the officer declined.

Authorities determined that Lee received approximately 700 million won (about USD 520,000) worth of Bitcoin for his role, while Kim received approximately 48 million won.

The trial court found Lee guilty, sentencing him to four years in prison and four years of suspension of qualifications. The court concluded that the hacker was a North Korean intelligence operative and that Lee had at least indirect awareness of this fact, based on the origin of the cryptocurrency payments and the nature of the instructions he received.

 

 

 

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