Justice Dept makes arrests in North Korean identity theft scheme involving thousands of IT workers

By ERIC TUCKER
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has announced three arrests in a complex stolen identity scheme that officials say generates enormous proceeds for the North Korean government, including for its weapons program. The scheme involves thousands of North Korean information technology workers who prosecutors say are dispatched by the government to live abroad and rely on the stolen identities of Americas to obtain remote employment at U.S.-based Fortune 500 companies. These jobs then give them access to sensitive corporate data and lucrative paychecks. Officials say the fraud is a way for heavily sanctioned North Korea, which is cut off from the U.S. financial system, to take advantage of a high-tech labor shortage and the proliferation of remote telework.