New Delhi: Imagine finding out your talented remote colleague, who you’ve trusted to handle critical projects, is secretly working from North Korea. Sounds like a plot straight out of a spy thriller, right? But that’s exactly what Microsoft discovered recently, causing a massive shake-up in the tech world. The company has suspended around 3,000 Outlook and Hotmail accounts linked to North Korean IT workers involved in a global scam.
Microsoft’s Threat Intelligence Center uncovered this elaborate operation, giving it a spy-movie name: “Jasper Sleet.” These North Korean workers faked their identities to secure remote jobs at top global tech firms. Shockingly, some of these companies reported that these scammers were among their best-performing remote employees.
DOJ steps in: Laptops seized, websites down
In a dramatic twist, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) jumped into action alongside Microsoft. Authorities seized hundreds of laptops, shut down 29 financial accounts, and took down nearly two dozen websites used by the scammers. Across the US, officials raided 29 “laptop farms”, basically shady places where locals, including some Americans, managed laptops shipped to them unknowingly by companies that hired North Korean scammers.
One bizarre case involved a nail salon employee in Maryland who held 13 remote jobs simultaneously. But he didn’t actually do any work. Instead, he outsourced it all to North Korean IT workers based in China, pocketing nearly $1 million in salaries.
Why this matters: Funding North Korea’s nuclear program
According to the United Nations, this scam generates a whopping $600 million annually, funneling money directly into Kim Jong Un’s nuclear weapons program. It’s no longer just a cybersecurity issue; it’s a full-blown national security concern.
Scammers getting smarter: AI used to evade detection
These scammers are evolving. Microsoft reported they’re now using advanced AI tools to fool employers. This includes everything from removing grammatical errors in messages to enhancing fake profile photos using tools like Faceswap. They’re even dabbling with voice-changing software to appear more authentic during interactions.
Microsoft’s senior director of Threat Intelligence, Jeremy Dallman, told Fortune, “Beyond the 3,000 consumer email accounts that were recently taken down, in our efforts to disrupt the actor activity and protect our customers from this threat, Microsoft has continued to takedown persona accounts as they are identified and track the actor’s use of AI.”