Kaspersky

Security · 21 Oct 2026North Korean Lazarus hackers use post-quantum cryptography in campaign against South Korean firms

North Korea's Lazarus hacking group has been observed using a post-quantum cryptographic mechanism to secure malicious payload delivery in a campaign targeting South Korean companies, according to researchers at Kaspersky. Dubbed FlashHole, the operation uses a complex infection chain that combines both old and new malware, with the group employing the standardized ML-KEM post-quantum mechanism to communicate with command-and-control servers.