FBI have concerns for businesses hiring IT staff from North Korea saying that freelancers were taking advantage of remote working opportunities. They hide their true identities and earn money for Pyongyang. US officials believe remote IT workers are working secretly for Kim Jong–un’s regime. It poses a great threat and risks and may breach sanctions.
State and Treasury departments issued Advisory on the matter
US officials issued an advisory in which the FBI said that the effort was intended to circumvent US. Also, UN sanctions. Also, these are efforts to bring money to North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs. Additionally, the companies hiring these workers are exposing themselves to legal consequences.
“There are thousands of DPRK IT workers both dispatched overseas and located within the DPRK, generating revenue that is remitted back to the North Korean government.
“These IT workers take advantage of existing demands for specific IT skills, such as software and mobile application development, to obtain freelance employment contracts from clients around the world, including in North America, Europe, and East Asia.”
North Korean workers pretend to be from South Korea, Japan and other Asian countries
According to officials, remote workers from North Korea pretend to be from other countries. Meanwhile, much of their earnings go to their government. Also, these workers help Pyongyang’s government in backed hacking operations.
The advisory suggests that the workers also “may steal the customer account information of the US or international banks to verify their identities with freelance platforms, payment providers, and companies employing” contract workers, it said.
US officials said that ‘’ Hiring the North Koreans “poses many risks, ranging from theft of intellectual property, data, and funds to reputational harm. Additionally, legal consequences, including sanctions under both US and United Nations authorities”.
