Change Agents with Andy Stumpf The North Korean Operation That Turned Remote Work Into a Massive Weapons Pipeline
Sep 24, 2025
Bobbie Johnson, a senior editor at Wired and investigative journalist, dives into a shocking investigation revealing North Korea's infiltration of Western tech companies via remote work schemes. She discusses how operatives use fake identities and AI tools to breeze through hiring processes. Bobbie outlines the role of U.S.-based facilitators in routing funds back to Pyongyang and highlights the risks beyond money, including data access. Companies are given urgent recommendations for enhancing their hiring practices to combat this emerging threat.
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Remote Jobs As A Revenue Engine
- North Korea uses remote IT jobs to infiltrate Western companies and earn hard currency for the regime.
- Operatives use fake Western identities and remote work to hide location and funnel salaries back to Pyongyang.
How The Story Began
- Bobbie discovered the scam after an entrepreneur told her about a string of suspicious interviewees with heavy Asian accents and Anglo resumes.
- That tip led her to set up further reporting and interviews uncovering wider industry awareness gaps.
AI And Deepfakes Power The Deception
- Attackers combine deepfakes, AI scripts, and programmatic coding tools to pass interviews and tests while hiding inconsistencies.
- They intentionally mimic imperfect human behavior to avoid detection (e.g., pass tests ~95% not 100%).