Consensys Hired Developer Later Linked to North Korea

Blockchain software firm Consensys contracted a developer using the alias Tyler Knapp who was later linked to North Korea. The contractor had access to some internal systems for about a month. Consensys paused product releases, revoked the contractor’s access and opened a security investigation.

The individual was introduced through an existing relationship with a third-party service provider and worked as a consultant rather than a full-time employee. The company says it discovered the connection shortly after the engagement began and removed access immediately.

Consensys completed an investigation and reported no misappropriation of assets or data, no malicious code deployment, and no impact to user safety or security. The firm also reported no loss of customer funds or compromise of user accounts tied to the incident.

The company declined to specify which systems were accessed beyond saying some internal systems were reachable during the engagement. The developer’s access lasted roughly one month before it was terminated.

In a statement, Consensys general counsel Matt Corva wrote: “Very quickly after being introduced, we discovered the threat, followed our security protocols, immediately terminated any access and launched a comprehensive investigation that confirmed there was no misappropriation of assets or data, no malicious code deployed, and no impact to user safety and security.”

Consensys said it will review its practices for outsourcing engineering work and strengthen vetting and onboarding for external contractors.

Security researchers have documented attempts by actors linked to North Korea to gain access to code repositories and internal systems by using fake job offers or contractor roles to target companies in the digital asset sector.