Topic

Laptop farms

Schemes where a local host keeps employer-issued laptops online for remote access so overseas IT workers, often North Korean, appear to work domestically.

Current stories

securityConfirmed17 publishers

DOJ seizes 187 laptops in raids on more than 40 Texas homes tied to North Korean IT workers

DOJ raided more than 40 Texas residences on September 21-25 and seized 187 laptops and other devices it says North Koreans used in an IT-worker scheme. The FBI says the workers now also hire freelancers in South Asia and West Africa, so US hosts are one intermediary among several.

Publishers:bleepingcomputer.com cbsnews.com crowdstrike.com crypto.news cyberscoop.com dev.to helpnetsecurity.com itnews.com.au itpro.com justice.gov metacurity.com nextgov.com securityweek.com techtimes.com thecyberexpress.com thehackernews.com therecord.media

Perspective Coverage

17 publishers

Builder: Builder 25%
Operator: Operator 55%
Investor: Investor 20%

Reality

Evidence80
Adoption: Not scored
Hype gap+25
Incentives55
Confidence78

buildConfirmed5 publishers

Prosecutors say North Korean remote workers got into at least 70 US companies

The Justice Department searched more than 40 Texas laptop farms serving North Korean IT workers and seized over 180 company-shipped computers. Prosecutors count at least 70 victim companies. For employers, the shipping address is now a control point.

Publishers:dev.to gizmodo.com mezha.net techcrunch.com thenextweb.com tomshardware.com

Perspective Coverage

6 publishers

Builder: Builder 13%
Operator: Operator 58%
Investor: Investor 29%

Reality

Evidence70
Adoption: Not scored
Hype gap+15
Incentives45
Confidence72

securityOne report1 publisher

Remote-worker fraud spreads beyond North Korea to Pakistan, India and Russia, Okta says

Okta's Katie Nickels says fake remote IT workers now operate from Pakistan, India and Russia as well as North Korea, mixing AI with human techniques. That moves the first security check on a new employee into the hiring process.

Publishers:scworld.com

Reality

Evidence30
Adoption: Not scored
Hype gap+35
Incentives: Not scored
Confidence40

securityConfirmed8 publishers

Joint advisory pins WaterPlum's fake recruiters to North Korea's 313 General Bureau

Four governments have put a bureau name on the fake-recruiter campaign against software developers, and their alert says the same crews also work as North Korea's remote IT hires, from the same IP addresses.

Publishers:bleepingcomputer.com cyberscoop.com infosecurity-magazine.com securityaffairs.com securityweek.com thecyberexpress.com thehackernews.com therecord.media

Perspective Coverage

8 publishers

Builder: Builder 34%
Operator: Operator 52%
Investor: Investor 14%

Reality

Evidence70
Adoption: Not scored
Hype gap+5
Incentives40
Confidence72

investOne report1 publisher

Four governments pin $10.7m of crypto theft on fake recruiter coding tests

A joint advisory ties about $10.71 million of stolen cryptocurrency to more than 30,000 infected devices in over 100 countries. That works out near $357 a machine, and the payroll half of the same operation ran for years.

Publishers:cryptopolitan.com

Reality

Evidence62
Adoption55
Hype gap+12
Incentives55
Confidence57