North Korea Secures Trillions of Won for Weapons Through Overseas IT Front Jobs... U.S. Administration Imposes Additional Sanctions

North Korean information technology (IT) workers have been found to be illegally employed at U.S. and other foreign companies using forged documents and stolen identities, generating more than 1 trillion won in illicit income in a single year. The Treasury Department announced additional sanctions on North Korean and third-country individuals and entities accused of placing these IT specialists in fraudulent jobs to raise funds for weapon of mass destruction (WMD) development.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Treasury Department said on the 12th (local time) that IT workers linked to North Korea are engaging in an organized scheme to obtain jobs at legitimate companies in the United States and allied countries by using forged documents and stolen identities. OFAC stated that six individuals and two entities involved in this scheme will be placed on its sanctions list.
According to OFAC, the North Korean government seizes a substantial portion of the wages earned by these workers. It estimated that in 2024 alone, this scheme generated about 800 million dollars, or roughly 1.2 trillion won.
OFAC noted that the North Korean authorities are believed to channel these funds into WMD and ballistic missile development. It also pointed out that North Korean-linked actors have secretly implanted malicious software into corporate networks to steal confidential information.
One of the entities targeted by the new sanctions is Amnokgang Technology Development Company, a North Korean IT firm. OFAC explained that the company manages IT workers dispatched overseas and conducts illicit activities, buying and selling military and commercial technologies through foreign networks.
Quang Viet International Services Company Limited, headquartered in Vietnam, was also sanctioned along with its chief executive officer, Nguyen Quang Viet. They are accused of converting 2.5 million dollars into cryptocurrency on behalf of the North Korean side between mid-2023 and mid-2025.
The company’s transaction records are reported to include income earned by IT workers associated with Amnokgang Technology Development Company. OFAC added that two Vietnamese nationals who assisted Kim Se-un, who is already under U.S. sanctions for her role in procuring materials for North Korea’s nuclear program, were also added to the sanctions list. They allegedly helped Kim Se-un open bank accounts under stolen identities and launder money earned by IT workers. A North Korean national, Yun Song Guk, who has led a group of North Korean freelance IT workers operating in Boten, Laos, at least since 2023, was likewise designated for sanctions.
The latest North Korea sanctions by the Treasury Department draw attention because they come as speculation grows that President Donald Trump may meet Kim Jong Un, President of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, during Trump’s planned visit to China later this month.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besent said, "The North Korean regime is targeting U.S. companies through deceptive tactics carried out by its overseas IT operatives," adding, "Under the leadership of President Donald Trump, the Treasury Department will continue to trace these financial flows to protect U.S. businesses from such malicious activities and hold those responsible to account."



rainman@fnnews.com Kim Kyung-soo Reporter