US targets network funneling IT earnings to North Korea

WASHINGTON: Federal prosecutors said on Tuesday that they had made two arrests and seized more than 180 computers in an effort to dismantle an alleged North Korean scheme to profit from remote IT work based in the US.

In a statement, the Department of Justice said it had searched "more than 40 suspected 'laptop farms' across Texas" that generated more than US$3 million for Pyongyang by deceiving US employers into hiring North Koreans.

Alongside the two Americans arrested in Ohio and Pennsylvania on money laundering and identity theft charges, authorities charged 14 others in Operation Lonestar Roundup, 10 of whom are based in China.

"North Korea's rogue regime uses its pervasive IT worker schemes to raise revenue for various illicit purposes, including the development of weapons that could ultimately target the United States or its allies," said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg.

Tuesday's announcement is the latest in a series of law enforcement actions targeting US-based laptop farms — facilities housing multiple computers used to generate illicit revenue for the North Korean government.

In April, two US nationals, Zhenxing Wang and Kejia Wang, were sentenced to 92 months and 108 months, respectively, for a "multi-year scheme that used the stolen identities of at least 80 US persons and generated more than US$5 million in illicit revenue" for the North Korean government.