North Korean Hackers Suspected in Record-Breaking DeFi Heist

A recent cybersecurity incident in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector has left the industry reeling. On April 1, 2026, Drift Protocol, a Solana-based decentralized perpetual futures exchange, was hacked, resulting in a loss of approximately $285 million.

According to blockchain intelligence firms TRM Labs and Elliptic, on-chain indicators suggest that North Korea's state-sponsored hacking groups were involved in the attack. This attribution is supported by the sophisticated nature of the hack, which experts describe as methodical and strategic.

The attackers managed to drain Drift's vaults in just 12 minutes, emptying its funds and bridging most of the stolen assets to Ethereum within hours. The hack was not an isolated incident, but rather the culmination of a series of events that took place between March 23 and 30.