North Korean IT workers scam US companies to fund arms programs
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Federal authorities have unraveled several schemes North Korea’s Democratic Republic (DPRK) It worked for the US companies used to fund the administration through remote information technology (IT), resulting in two prosecutions, technical and financial seizures and arrests.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) said Monday that the North Korean actor has been helped by individuals from the US, China, the United Arab Emirates and Taiwan to gain employment with more than 100 US companies, including Fortune 500 companies.
In one scheme, US-based individuals created fraudulent websites with front companies to promote legitimacy for remote workers, while holding laptop farms where remote North Korean IT workers can access laptop computers remotely provided by the company.
In another scheme, North Korean IT workers used their false identity to acquire jobs at a blockchain research and development company in Atlanta, Georgia, and stole over $900,000 in cryptocurrency.
Kay Kyoung-Ju Kwak, executive director of Talon at Cyber Threat Intelligence Group at S2W Inc., works at the Panjo Techno Valley desk in Seoul, South Korea on Wednesday, August 17, 2022. (Wohae Cho/Bloomberg via Getty Image)
DOJ’s National Security Advisor John A. Eisenberg said the scheme would steal targets and steals from US companies, and is designed to avoid sanctions while funding illegal programs, including the North Korean weapons program.
“While North Korea intends to fund its arms program by scaming US businesses and exploiting American victims into identity theft, the FBI is equally intended to disrupt this massive campaign and bring its perpetrators to justice.” FBI Counter Intelligence Division I said. “North Korean IT workers pretending to be American citizens were able to put hundreds of millions of dollars into North Korea’s authoritarian regime, as they fraudulently acquired employment with American companies.”
As part of an announcement about North Korea’s plans, the DOJ sealed off a five-count indictment against Senxing One, a US citizen living in New Jersey.
Wang and his co-conspirators said they got it, according to the DOJ. Remote IT works It generated more than $5 million in revenue, along with US companies.
Also indicted in the indictment are Chinese nationals Jing Bin Huang, Baoyu Zhou, Tong Yuze, Yongzhe Xu, Ziyou Yuan and Zhenbang Zhou. Taiwanese citizens have been indicted for contemplating Li and Enchia Liu.
Also indicted was U.S. National Kezia “Tony” Wang of New Jersey.
“The threat posed by DPRK operatives is realistic and immediate. Thousands of North Korean cyber operatives are trained and deployed by the administration, blending into the global digital workforce, and systematically targeting US companies.” “We will continue to work tirelessly to protect US businesses and ensure that DPRK’s illegal and dangerous ambitions are not mistakenly fueled.”
The indictment alleges that throughout most of 2021-2024, the defendants and other co-conspirators violated the identities of more than 80 people in the United States, gaining remote jobs at more than 100 companies. As a result, the victim companies suffered legal costs, computer network repair costs and other damages and losses for adjustments of at least $3 million.
Kejia and Zhenxing, along with at least four other US facilitators, are said to have supported overseas IT workers with different parts of the scheme.
For example, there are allegations that a US facilitator received a laptop from a US company in his home, allowing overseas IT workers to access the laptop remotely. This was done by connecting the laptop to a hardware device designed to allow remote access. This can be a keyboard and video mouse or a KVM switch.
Kejia and Zhenxing are said to have set up a shell company with a website and financial account so that overseas IT workers appear to be affiliated with legitimate US companies.
In exchange for their services, Kejia, Zhenxing and four other US co-conspirators received at least $696,000 from IT workers.
DOJ He said one of the companies that planners allegedly accessed the data is a defense contractor developing equipment and technology equipped with artificial intelligence. By accessing company data, schemers were aware of arms regulations (ITAR) international traffic, the DOJ said.
The Justice Department has announced multiple indictments related to a complex scheme involving North Korean actors and US individuals. (Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The DOJ also announced that the FBI and Defense Crime Investigation Services (DCIS) have seized 17 web domains used as part of the scheme, and that 29 financial accounts used to wash the revenues of the North Korean regime hold thousands of dollars.
DOJ announced another part of the scheme, resulting in five countwire fraud and money laundering indictments against five North Korean citizens: Kim Kwang Jin, Kang Taebok, Jeongbong JU, and Change Nam II.
The suspect has been accused of planning to steam cryptocurrency from two companies that exceeded $900,000 at the time of theft and washing revenues.
According to the DOJ, all four of the citizens are large and are being sought by the FBI.
“The defendant hid North Korean nationality, posed as a remote IT worker and used a false personal identity to exploit the victim’s trust in stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars,” said Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg of northern Georgia. “The indictment highlights the unique threats that North Korea poses to companies that employ far-reaching IT workers, and its determination to indict US or overseas actors stealing from Georgia businesses.”
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Gabel watches the mediocre views, and in the courtroom. (istock)
The indictment alleges that the four defendants traveled to the United Arab Emirates on North Korean travel documents and worked as a co-hosting team.
Jin and Ju are also allegedly hired by a blockchain research and development company in Atlanta and a Serbia-based virtual token company.
While employed, Jin and JU concealed their North Korean identity from their employers and provided false identification documents, the DOJ allegedly.
Both defendants ultimately gained the trust of their employers and allegedly stole hundreds of thousands of dollars in multiple instances. The funds were then washed, transferred to an account held by me and Nam, and are said to have been fraudulently opened using Malaysian identification documents.
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Under investigation, FBI We performed searches of 21 facilities in 14 states hosting known laptop farms. During the run, the FBI seized 137 laptops.