Man jailed for helping North Korea’s crypto ambitions

North Korea’s crypto ambitions have resulted in a man being jailed. According to a report on the ABC, Virgin Griffith, an American citizen, was arrested and jailed for defying US sanctions.

Griffith did a lot more than send some emails and write up some white papers for the regime. He admitted to presenting at a crypto conference in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, in 2019, and was also guilty of developing cryptocurrency infrastructure and equipment” within the hermit state.

It’s entirely unsurprising why North Korea is interested in crypto. As the Russians are also currently trying now, digital currencies are seen as a way of potentially evading sanctions. Griffith’s guidance was often with that focus.

Strict sanctions also mean that it’s illegal to export technology of any nature to North Korea.

Griffith is a well-known hacker who has at other times assisted the FBI with technology literacy, especially around the dark web. He was given a 63-month prison sentence.