North Korean hacking group builds AI tools

A North Korean hacking group ⁠built ⁠large language model tools and collected software that could help automate cyberattacks, analyse stolen material and produce more convincing phishing campaigns, a ‌South Korean cyber security firm said.

The ‌cyber security firm, Genians, said it ‌found evidence that the North ⁠Korean-linked group Kimsuky had set up tools for running and managing AI models locally, including Ollama, GPT4All and Msty, alongside document search technology ​known as retrieval augmented generation (RAG).

According to the company, the tools could allow operators ⁠to process documents without sending sensitive information to outside AI services.

Genians also found AI agent development frameworks, speech-to-text software and Cursor, an AI-assisted coding tool, on infrastructure it linked to the campaign.

The findings suggest Kimsuky is moving beyond using generative AI to create phishing lures and ​is building capacity to integrate ⁠existing AI models into malware development, ⁠data analysis and attack automation, Genians said in a report.

Genians also ​said it found finance and cryptocurrency-themed decoy ‌documents that ⁠appeared to have been generated with AI.

The materials were designed to resemble legitimate investment reports and other workplace documents, ‌it said.

The company's findings could not be independently verified.

North Korea has for years used state-linked cyber units for espionage, financial theft and revenue ​generation, according to US and South Korean authorities, as well as cybersecurity experts.

The US Treasury in 2023 sanctioned Kimsuky as ‌a ⁠North Korean government-controlled cyber-espionage ​group, saying it gathered intelligence in support of Pyongyang's strategic objectives.