An Arizona resident was convicted to eight and a half years behind bars for her involvement in assisting North Korean employees to penetrate US firms by masquerading as American workers.

From an article:

As per court records, Chapman maintained the computers of the North Korean IT personnel in her residence from October 2020 to October 2023, establishing a so-called “laptop farm” that created the illusion that the devices were situated within the United States.

The North Koreans were engaged as remote software and application engineers for various Fortune 500 firms, including an aerospace and defense corporation, a leading television network, a technology enterprise in Silicon Valley, and a prominent company.

This operation accrued over $17 million in illegal income received for their services, a portion of which was allocated to Chapman, who handled their payroll through her financial channels.

“Chapman managed a ‘laptop farm’ where she received and hosted computers from the U.S. corporations at her residence, ensuring that the businesses believed the workers were located in the United States,” the Justice Department stated on Thursday.

“Chapman also dispatched 49 laptops and additional devices provided by U.S. companies to overseas destinations, including several shipments to a city in China bordering North Korea. Following the execution of a search warrant in October 2023, more than 90 laptops were confiscated from Chapman’s residence.”