North Korea-based cybercriminals are suspected to be using untraceable alternative cryptocurrencies, or altcoins, to convert stolen funds into cash. According to an NK News report, an unpublished United Nations Panel of Experts report states that North Korea-backed hackers have stolen approximately $1.5 billion in cryptocurrencies and they were converting a portion of that amount into cash. The hackers deliberately transact using privacy-focused altcoins as they are hard to trace and track, moving the stolen assets to loosely regulated cryptocurrency exchanges that have minimal customer identification requirements. ... (full story)