U.S. Sentences Eight "Laptop Farm" Operators for Aiding North Korean IT Workers, Affecting 70 Companies

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, over the past five months, eight people have been sentenced for acting as proxies for North Korean IT workers. In May alone, Matthew Issac Knoot (Tennessee) and Erick Ntekereze Prince (New York) each received 18-month sentences; together they generated $1.2 million in revenue for North Korea and affected nearly 70 U.S. companies.

The “laptop farm” operators received computers mailed by U.S. companies, installed remote desktop software, and enabled North Korean IT personnel to pose as American employees. In April, Kejia Wang and Zhenxing Wang (New Jersey) received 9 and 7.8-year sentences respectively for operating a larger-scale operation that generated over $5 million for North Korea. The Department reported a 220% increase in companies employing North Korean workers over the past year, with over 320 enterprises compromised.