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The Ethereum Foundation exposed 100 Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)‑linked IT workers embedded across roughly 53 crypto projects.

Ethereum Foundation Levels Up Its Security With A Detective Program

The North Korean secret crypto-agents don’t rest, so the Ethereum Foundation decided it was time they put on the detective’s hat to track them before they too fell victims to them, just as Drift Protocol was at the beginning of the month. And so, yesterday afternoon the Foundation announced on an official blog post the starking results yielded by the ETH Rangers Program (and yes, everything related to North Korean hackers inevitably sounds straight out of an RPG or action movie).

The ETH Rangers Program has wrapped up and the results speak for themselves: $5.8M+ recovered, 785+ vulnerabilities reported, 100+ DPRK operatives identified, and so much more.

A decentralized defence for a decentralized network.

Read the full recap

— EF Ecosystem Support Program (@EF_ESP) April 16, 2026

According to the blog post, the Ethereum Foundation teamed up with Secureum, The Red Guild, and Security Alliance (SEAL) in late 2024 to roll out said program. The initiative offered stipends to people carrying out public‑goods security work across the Ethereum ecosystem.

Related Reading: Blockchain Is South Korea’s New Fiscal Weapon — A Blow To Privacy?

The program’s mission consisted in backing independent security initiatives that strengthen Ethereum’s overall robustness, while spotlighting and rewarding contributors with a proven history of delivering high‑impact security work for the broader network.

After six months, the results of the program speak for itself.

The DPRK Crypto-Infiltration Saga, Parth Who-Is-Even-Counting-At-This-Point

The ETH Rangers Program funded multiple crypto-security projects, but the Ketman Project was the one “focused on discovering and expelling North Korean (DPRK) IT workers who have infiltrated blockchain projects under fake identities”, per the blog post.

Over the six months of the investigation, they contacted roughly 53 different projects and uncovered around 100 DPRK IT operatives embedded inside Web3 organizations.

Their findings were shared in a series of detailed reports on ketman.org, which drew more than 3,300 active users and 6,200 page views, and explored themes such as account‑takeover techniques, the infiltration of freelance platforms, and emerging DPRK‑Russia ties. They also built and open‑sourced gh‑fake‑analyzer, a GitHub profile analysis tool designed to flag suspicious activity patterns, which is now available via PyPI.

In addition, they co‑authored the DPRK IT Workers Framework with SEAL, a document that has quickly become a go‑to reference for the industry, and supplied crucial data to the Lazarus.group threat‑intel project, with their work highlighted in a presentation at DEF CON.

Overall Results Of The Ethereum Program

The work produced by the 17 stipend recipients cover everything from vulnerability research and security tooling to education, threat intelligence, and hands‑on incident response.

According to the Ethereum Foundation, more than $5.8 million in funds have been recovered or frozen, while over 785 vulnerabilities, client bugs, and proof‑of‑concept exploits have been reported or documented. The Program has also helped identify around 100 DPRK state‑sponsored operatives embedded across multiple teams, and its threat‑intelligence and investigative content has reached over 209,000 viewers and users.

On the builder side, more than 800 teams have taken part in sponsored security challenges and investigations, supported by over 80 workshops, talks, and technical or educational resources. The initiative has coordinated responses to more than 36 security incidents and driven the creation or improvement of at least seven open‑source tooling repositories, frameworks, and implementations that further harden the ecosystem.

The Saga Continues

The DPRK-linked hacks continue to be a serious issue amongst the crypto community. Recently, key actors have been less lenient and more active in trying to uncover and stop their threat.

Let’s remember that, following the  the attribution of the April 1st $285 million attack on Drift Protocol to UNC4736, a North Korea–aligned, state‑sponsored hacking group, crypto detective ZachXBT uncovered an internal North Korean payment server tied to 390+ accounts, chat logs, and transaction histories.

A few weeks ago, some crypto builders confessed on the social network X that they are passing tests during interviews to developers to make sure they are not North Korean agents.

Investing in visible, transparent security collaborations (like EF’s backing of ETH Rangers/Ketman/SEAL) may deserve a premium in risk models, while protocols with opaque teams and loose hiring are increasingly “headline risk” candidates.

At the moment of writing, ETH trades for around $2,300 on the daily chart. Source: ETHUSD on Tradingview.

Cover image from Perplexity. ETHUSD chart from Tradingview.

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North Carolina is moving forward with a new initiative to incorporate Bitcoin into its financial strategy. The state has introduced Senate Bill 327 (SB327), which would allow the allocation of up to 10% of public funds into Bitcoin as a reserve asset. The bill aims to position North Carolina as a leader in state-level cryptocurrency adoption.

North Carolina Bill for State Bitcoin Investment Strategy

According to a recent report, SB327, proposed by three senators of the Republican party, Todd Johnson, Brad Overcash, and Timothy Moffitt, the bill sees the usage of Bitcoin investment as a means to strengthen the position of North Carolina’s economy. Per the bill, Bitcoin should be recognized as a long-term financial asset and part of the state’s financial innovation policy.

According to the bill, the State Treasurer would be allowed to invest the public funds in Bitcoin as a percentage in its operations, with that specific percentage being 10%. This could be in line with the state’s economic development strategy that aims to adapt to the financial technology following North Korea’s speculation of launching a BTC reserve too.

Similarly, Bitcoins would be held in cold-storage in multiple signatures as a measure of security in holding the funds. Besides the creation of a Bitcoin reserve, the bill also introduces a setting up of the Bitcoin Economic Advisory Board as a committee of trained professionals in the management of the reserve.

Strict Control on Bitcoin Usage

The bill sets certain conditions for using Bitcoin in the state with a focus on the restricted usage. Some situations in which Bitcoin held in the reserve can be sold include; during a severe financial crisis other reserve assets are inadequate, or for financing objectives concerning infrastructure and development.

To sell any of the Bitcoin, the North Carolina General Assembly both chambers will need the approval of at least two-thirds. This decision follows Deutsche Bank prediction that a Bitcoin reserve in the US could offset the national debt, which may also be the result for North Carolina.

The bill also states that the Bitcoin reserve should be used selectively. Such as providing bonds for public works, or venture into funding of research and spreading of knowledge about Bitcoin. This means that the state’s Bitcoin reserve will not be used to meet the daily fiscal needs of the state but will be used in a strategic manner in the future.

Bitcoin Mining as a Potential Source of Revenue

Out of all the features found in SB327, the most distinctive feature that needs to be pointed out is the provision made for Bitcoin mining. The bill recommends that North Carolina consider engaging in Bitcoin mining activities because this would enable the state to accumulate more BTC cheaply. Bitcoin mining, which involves verifying transactions on the blockchain and earning new Bitcoin in return, could allow the state to build its Bitcoin reserve over time without relying solely on market purchases.

With the integration of mining operations into the plan North Carolina would be able to cut down its initial costs of investment and at the same time develop a new industry within the region. Since Bitcoin mining is a legitimate activity involving the state’s participation to generate more businesses and employment in this technological area, it would contribute to the state’s economic improvement. Currently, SB327 is one of several bills on the billboards of the North Carolina legislature aimed at adapting cryptocurrencies into state law.

Alongside this bill, the state’s House of Representatives has introduced House Bill 92 (HB 92), which would allow the State Treasurer to invest in Bitcoin exchange-traded products (ETPs). HB92 proposes allocating up to 10% of public funds and retirement systems into ETPs that track digital assets, particularly Bitcoin.

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Kelvin Munene Murithi

Kelvin is a distinguished writer with expertise in crypto and finance, holding a Bachelor’s degree in Actuarial Science. Known for his incisive analysis and insightful content, he possesses a strong command of English and excels in conducting thorough research and delivering timely cryptocurrency market updates.

Disclaimer: The presented content may include the personal opinion of the author and is subject to market condition. Do your market research before investing in cryptocurrencies. The author or the publication does not hold any responsibility for your personal financial loss.