“Cyber has just turned up the scale of criminality in a way that was unimaginable even ten years ago”: Misha Glenny on Billion Dollar Heist

Billion Dollar Heist is the new documentary from Daniel Gordon that delves into the story of the 2016 Bangladesh Bank robbery, where a group of hackers managed to steal $81 million from the US Federal Reserve account of the Central Bangladesh bank – and nearly had their hands on a full billion. Via reconstructions, animations and talking heads, the film provides context for how cybercrime has ramped up in recent years, as well as detailing just how the Lazarus Group went about their heist, and the surprising role human error played in both its success and failure.

The Upcoming spoke to journalist and author Misha Glenny about how the documentary came about, his previous work, McMafia, being adapted for the screen, the process of collaborating with the director and what people can learn about the current risks around cyber security from the film.

Sarah Bradbury

Billion Dollar Heist is available to rent and own on 14^th August 2023.

Watch the trailer for Billion Dollar Heist here: