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BBC World Service

They steal billions: Cyber Hack investigates the alleged cyber gangs and the heists and hacks they’re accused of carrying out. No one is said to be safe. From Hollywood studios, to international banks, from crypto exchanges to small businesses and health care companies, law enforcement agencies say they cause chaos around the globe. Who will be next? And where is the money going?

Latest season: Evil Corp. The Russian Evil Corp is accused of being a family crime gang, responsible for stealing hundreds of millions of dollars. Law enforcement agencies say they are “the most pervasive cybercrime group to ever have operated”. No one is off limits – not even a group of nuns in Chicago.

Previously on Cyber Hack: The Lazarus Heist. This hacking group is said to be behind the biggest crypto heist in history, stealing billions of dollars in the process. Investigators blame North Korea’s state-backed hackers The Lazarus Group, and say the stolen money is being used to finance its nuclear weapons and missile development programs. Pyongyang denies involvement. Among the Lazarus Group’s many targets are Hollywood’s Sony Entertainment and the Bank of Bangladesh. ATMs are cleaned out of money, while its operatives live double lives in a hacker hotel. But where does the money trail lead?

The Lazarus Heist

Investigators hunting for Maksim Yakubets, allege he is working with the FSB – Russia’s security agency. They say the Evil Corp gang has stolen more than $100m from at least 300 victim organisations in 43 countries - but who is the powerful man in Moscow said to be protecting Maksim, their alleged leader? We follow his family’s journey from a humble sausage factory in Ukraine to the Russian high-life – and the frontier of cybercrime. 
 
Hosted by Joe Tidy, the BBC’s cyber correspondent – one of the few Western journalists to have met an alleged member of Evil Corp – and the BBC’s Sarah Rainsford, who spent more than two decades reporting from Moscow.

Evil Corp: 6. Fatherland

As the cyber criminals reinvent themselves, FBI Special Agent Keith Mularski goes undercover to infiltrate the operation. But as kingpin Tank is finally arrested, another leader rises with the creation of a new crew: Evil Corp. The group’s alleged leader, Maksim Yakubets, would go on to steal millions using “one of the most prolific and successful malware strains” in the history of cyber-crime.

Hosted by Joe Tidy, the BBC’s cyber correspondent – one of the few Western journalists to have met an alleged member of Evil Corp – and the BBC’s Sarah Rainsford, who spent more than two decades reporting from Moscow.

Evil Corp: 5. Game over

A cyber-crime kingpin in a US prison speaks for the first time. How did he dodge the FBI when they came to his home? And how did he and his alleged crime gang steal millions of dollars from their victims? We learn that Jabber Zeus boss Tank had friends in high political places in Ukraine – and a budding young business associate in Russia.

Hosted by Joe Tidy, the BBC’s cyber correspondent – one of the few Western journalists to have met an alleged member of Evil Corp – and the BBC’s Eastern and Southern Europe correspondent Sarah Rainsford, who spent more than two decades reporting from Moscow.

Evil Corp: 4. The insider

The net tightens on the Jabber Zeus crew. Police and intelligence services across borders are poised to synchronise raids, but cops in London are thrown a last-minute curveball that could see the whole operation implode. Meanwhile, tales of Tank’s past emerge - and his former life as club DJ Slava Rich. But as FBI agents working in Ukraine brace to break down doors and make arrests, are the hackers already aware of what’s coming?

Hosted by Joe Tidy, the BBC’s cyber correspondent – one of the few Western journalists to have met an alleged member of Evil Corp – and the BBC’s Eastern and Southern Europe correspondent Sarah Rainsford, who spent more than two decades reporting from Moscow.

Evil Corp: 3. Agents on the doorstep

A rookie FBI agent is swept up in a case that goes from Main St, USA, to the UK, Ukraine and Russia. Cyber-crime victims are everywhere. This is way bigger than Jim Craig thought. He travels to Ukraine to meet his counterparts. Over vodka and fine food in a dacha in the Ukrainian forest, they make a plan to go after the suspected cyber hackers.

Hosted by Joe Tidy, the BBC’s cyber correspondent – one of the few Western journalists to have met an alleged member of Evil Corp – and the BBC’s Sarah Rainsford, who spent more than two decades reporting from Moscow.

Evil Corp: 2. Into the storm

Moscow drag racers, an opulent Russian wedding and a malware code named after the Greek god of thunder - how do they all connect? A cyber-sleuth and “dark hero of the internet” Lawrence Baldwin sees signs of an emerging underworld. As money vanishes from accounts across the US, Lawrence follows the trail, infiltrating the gang - holding out for clues. But who are these audacious hackers?

Hosted by Joe Tidy, the BBC’s cyber correspondent, one of the few Western journalists to have met an alleged member of Evil Corp, and Sarah Rainsford, who spent more than two decades reporting from Moscow.

Evil Corp: 1. Zeus

Accused of stealing hundreds of millions of dollars – Russia’s most wanted hackers. Just who are Evil Corp? In season 3 of Cyber Hack, we follow the years’ long trail with investigators as they try to track down the man alleged to be at the centre of it all, hacker Maksim Yakubets.

Follow or subscribe to Cyber Hack, so you never miss an episode.

Evil Corp: Trailer

A message from Geoff White on changes you'll see to The Lazarus Heist podcast feed, which will now be called Cyber Hack, from the BBC World Service. 
 
From this point on we're giving all series of this podcast the over-arching name of Cyber Hack. But don't worry, series 1 and 2 will remain as The Lazarus Heist, co-hosted by Geoff and Jean Lee.
 
And then we have a new series coming very soon, hosted by the BBC's Joe Tidy and Sarah Rainsford, looking at another alleged major hacking group.
 
You can listen to Cyber Hack, just as before, wherever you get your BBC podcasts.

The Lazarus Heist S2: A message to listeners

$1.5 billion disappears in minutes. But what follows reveals North Korea’s expanding reach — from elite hackers to soldiers on the battlefield.

The audacious attack was on the ByBit crypto exchange in February 2025. Investigators say North Korean hackers the Lazarus Group are responsible – the biggest heist in the history of crypto. With our hosts Jean Lee and Geoff White, we uncover how they pulled it off.

But as Pyongyang’s cyber army is striking targets all over the world, North Korean soldiers have also been fighting on more traditional battlegrounds – siding with Russia in its war on Ukraine. We meet the South Korean correspondent who secured a world-exclusive interview with a North Korean POW. 

Does this all signify a turning point for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, as his cyber operatives pull off increasingly daring heists and his military gain real-world combat experience fighting with the Russians against Ukraine? As Kim continues to ally with Vladimir Putin — a leader whose country possesses exactly the kind of nuclear expertise North Korea has long sought – is he more dangerous than ever? 

Meanwhile North Korea says it has nothing to do with the cybercrimes the Lazarus Group is accused of, saying the United States is making these allegations to try and tarnish its image.

Our story is about more than money. It’s about where it goes, what it buys, and who’s fighting in the shadows.

The Lazarus Heist S2: Special: The biggest heist yet

“Are you a North Korean hacker? Yes, I am.” Investigators say money from the Lazarus Group’s hacks is flowing into Kim Jong-un’s nuclear weapons programme. Can it be stopped?
#LazarusHeist

The Lazarus Heist S2: 9. Big spenders

“Dark arts”, murders and a place with a murky past. Breaking news: an unexpected interview with one of the middlemen. 
Please help us spread the word about #LazarusHeist on social media and leave ratings and reviews.

Correction: This episode says that Kim Jong-nam was killed in 2015. The correct date was 2017.

The Lazarus Heist S1: 9. The Macau connection

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