The US has warned that North Korean IT workers are trying to get remote jobs by hiding their real identities to steal money for Pyongyang.
Many of them claim to be from other parts of Asia, according to three US government agencies.
They allegedly help fund North Korea’s weapons programs, in violation of international sanctions.
The country has conducted several missile tests in recent months.
In March, North Korea tested a banned ICBM for the first time since 2017.
“The DPRK [North Korea] deploys thousands of highly skilled IT personnel around the world to generate revenue that contributes to its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs in violation of U.S. and UN sanctions,” the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Treasury and the U.S. said Federal Bureau of Investigation in a joint statement Monday.
The statement said the workers were based in North Korea and other countries, primarily China and Russia. A smaller number are said to be based in Africa and Southeast Asia.
“These IT staff are capitalizing on the existing demand for specific IT skills, such as: B. Development of software and mobile applications to receive freelance work contracts from clients around the world, including in North America, Europe and East Asia.
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“Although DPRK IT personnel are typically engaged in IT work distinct from malicious cyber activities, they have used the privileged access they have been granted as contractors to enable the DPRK’s malicious cyber intrusions.” , added the statement.
It also said companies that hire North Korean workers could face legal penalties for violating sanctions.
Last month, the US linked North Korean-backed hackers to a massive $615 million (£498.4 million) cryptocurrency heist from players of the popular online game Axie Infinity.
Also in April, a former US researcher at a cryptocurrency group was sentenced to more than five years in prison for conspiring to help North Korea circumvent US sanctions.
Virgil Griffith used to work for the Ethereum Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on the technology behind the cryptocurrency Ether.
He had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the US International Emergency Economic Powers Act by traveling to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang to give a presentation on blockchain technology.
The Ethereum Foundation said at the time of Griffith’s arrest that it neither approved nor supported his trip to North Korea.
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