Is Your New Star Employee a Secret Agent? The Alarming Rise of Fake IT Workers
Hi everyone, it’s John. Welcome back to the blog where we make sense of the complex world of technology. Today, we’re diving into a topic that sounds like it’s straight out of a spy movie, but it’s a very real and growing problem for companies everywhere.
Imagine this: you’re hiring for your team. You find a resume that looks perfect. This candidate has years of experience, all the right skills, and works remotely. You hire them, and they seem great. But what if that person isn’t who they say they are? What if they’re actually a highly skilled operative working for the North Korean government?
It sounds unbelievable, but US government agencies have issued serious warnings about this. It’s a global issue, and if you hire people for tech roles, you need to know about it.
What’s Really Going On Here?
So, here’s the breakdown. The North Korean government, which is under heavy international sanctions, has found a clever and concerning way to earn money. They are training thousands of highly skilled IT workers and helping them create fake online identities. These individuals then pretend to be from other countries—say, the US, Canada, or somewhere in Europe—and apply for remote jobs at companies just like yours.
Their main mission? To earn foreign currency and secretly funnel it back to their government. It’s a large-scale operation that uses the global demand for tech talent as a cover.
Lila: “Wait, John, you mentioned ‘sanctions.’ What exactly are those?”
John: “Great question, Lila! Think of it like a global ‘time-out.’ When one country behaves in a way that the rest of the world disagrees with, other countries might agree to stop trading with them or lending them money. These restrictions are called sanctions. They’re meant to put economic pressure on that country to change its ways. North Korea faces some of the strictest sanctions in the world, which is why they’re resorting to schemes like this to get cash.”
How to Spot the Red Flags: Is Your Candidate an Imposter?
This isn’t about becoming a paranoid employer. It’s about being a smart and safe one. These operations are sophisticated, but they often leave behind clues. If you know what to look for, you can protect your company. Here are some of the biggest warning signs.
1. The “Perfect” Resume with a Ghostly Online Presence
The first thing you’ll notice is a fantastic resume. It lists impressive projects, top-tier skills, and years of experience. But when you try to look them up online, things get weird. Their professional networking profiles, like LinkedIn, might be very new, have very few connections, or show almost no activity.
Lila: “What do you mean by ‘thin LinkedIn connections,’ John? Wouldn’t a fake profile just add a bunch of people?”
John: “You’d think so, Lila, but building a believable online history takes time. A real professional with 10 years of experience would have hundreds of connections, endorsements from former colleagues, and a history of posts or comments. A fake profile often looks sterile and empty. It’s like meeting someone who claims to be a world-famous movie director, but they have no movie posters, no photos with actors, and only ten followers on social media. It just doesn’t add up.”
2. They’re Allergic to Live Video
This is perhaps the most significant red flag. You’ll ask for a video interview, and they’ll come up with a thousand excuses:
- “Oh, my webcam is broken.”
- “My internet connection is too unstable for video.”
- “I’m more comfortable with just a voice call.”
They might insist on text-based interviews or phone calls only. The reason is simple: the person on the resume is not the person you’d be talking to. They are likely using a “proxy”—someone else to handle the interview—or using pre-recorded answers, which is impossible to do in a live, interactive video chat.
3. Inconsistent Stories and Scripted Answers
If you do manage to get them on a call, pay close attention to how they answer your questions. Do their answers sound generic or rehearsed? If you ask a spontaneous follow-up question that goes off-script, do they get flustered or give a vague response? This can be a sign that they’re being fed answers by someone else.
4. Strange Payment Requests
When it comes time to discuss payment, another set of red flags may appear. They might ask to be paid in cryptocurrency, or request that their salary be sent to a bank account in a country different from where they claim to live and work. These are classic methods for laundering money and obscuring its final destination.
Your Defense Plan: A Simple Checklist to Stay Safe
Okay, so the threat is real. But the good news is that defending against it doesn’t require an expensive security team. It just requires a vigilant and common-sense hiring process. Here’s a simple checklist to follow.
- Make Live Video Interviews Mandatory: This is non-negotiable. Insist on a live, face-to-face video call where you can see the person and interact with them in real time. If a candidate refuses without a very good, verifiable reason, consider it a deal-breaker.
- Ask for a Live Demonstration: During the video interview, ask them to perform a simple, relevant task on the spot. For a programmer, you could ask them to share their screen and write a few lines of code. For a designer, maybe ask them to talk through a design choice in a portfolio piece. This confirms their skills and that they are who they say they are.
- Do Your Digital Homework: Go beyond the resume. Scrutinize their LinkedIn profile. Check for a history of activity, mutual connections, and recommendations that look genuine. Look at their other professional footprints, like a GitHub or Behance profile. Does it all tell a consistent story over time?
- Verify Identity and Payment Details: Use a trusted third-party service for background checks. When it’s time to set up payroll, ensure the bank account is in the candidate’s name and located in the country where they claim to reside. Be extremely wary of any requests to send money to multiple accounts or use cryptocurrencies.
A Few Final Thoughts
John’s Perspective: It’s a strange new world we live in, where your newest star developer could be part of a state-sponsored financial operation. This whole situation is a powerful reminder that even as technology advances, the human element of trust and verification is more critical than ever. AI can help screen resumes, but it can’t replace the gut feeling and critical thinking that comes from a real, live conversation.
Lila’s Perspective: Wow, I never would have thought of this. I always assumed a resume was just… real. It’s a bit scary, but it makes me realize that hiring someone online involves so much more than just their listed skills. It’s about making sure they are a real, verifiable person. I’m glad to know what to look out for now!
This article is based on the following original source, summarized from the author’s perspective:
You have a fake North Korean IT worker problem – here’s how
to stop it