North Korean Hackers Stole Over $400M in 18-Month FaceDealer Scam

The FaceDealer campaign shows that social engineering, not smart contract exploits, remains one of the most efficient ways to extract capital from crypto — and the targeting of senior professionals rather than retail users is the notable shift. The FBI's disclosure of blocked recordings tied to over 900 victims suggests law enforcement is now tracking the infrastructure, not just the losses, which raises the question of how much of the stolen funds can realistically be traced or recovered. Whether this tactic fades as awareness spreads, or migrates to other professional communities, is the open question.