A Tennessee man has been arrested for allegedly working to raise money for North Korea’s weapons program, according to the Justice Department. The 38-year-old man is accused of aiding North Korean workers in posing as US citizens to secure employment at American and British tech companies. The scheme also involved laundering money earned by the workers to financial accounts linked to individuals in North Korea and China.
The man allegedly operated a “laptop farm” from his residences in Nashville, providing North Koreans with access to US internet connections to make it seem like they were working from the US instead of China. This fraudulent operation reportedly defrauded various US media, tech, and financial companies, resulting in significant financial losses.
This case is part of a larger trend where North Korean IT workers attempt to evade sanctions and funnel millions of dollars back to Pyongyang annually. These workers often collaborate with North Korean hackers, who contribute substantial funds to the regime through cyberattacks and cryptocurrency theft.
According to the Justice Department, the IT workers associated with the arrested man were paid over $250,000 between July 2022 and August 2023. The payments were falsely reported to the IRS and the Social Security Administration using stolen identities.
This incident is the latest in a series of cases involving Americans aiding North Korean fraud schemes. The Biden administration has made combating North Korea’s sanctions-evasion efforts a top national security priority.
North Korean IT workers are not only involved in revenue generation but also play a significant role in cyber operations for the regime, as stated by Cynthia Kaiser, deputy assistant director of the FBI’s Cyber Division. The FBI is actively monitoring and flagging suspicious activities related to North Korean IT workers applying for jobs at US companies.
Recent incidents, such as a cybersecurity company unknowingly hiring a North Korean worker who attempted to load malware onto their system, highlight the ongoing challenges posed by North Korea’s illicit activities in cyberspace.
