FBI warns business owners of North Korean remote workers scam

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The crest of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C.

The FBI announced Monday that four North Korean citizens have been indicted on wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges after allegedly scamming an Atlanta business.

Marlon Williams, the founder of blockchain company Starter Labs says his company was extorted out of over $900,000 after he hired remote IT workers through Telegram in 2020 later found to be North Korean scammers who used fake identities and documents in the hiring process. 

Williams said his company has made changes after the extortion.

“The creator of Bitcoin created a culture of anonymity that is just widely accepted as this is how we work as a crypto culture," he said. "However, or at least for us over at Starter Labs in our community, we're going back to the basics of building real relationships with people in real life."

The FBI said this same scam is happening across the world, and that cryptocurrency companies such as Starter Labs are particularly vulnerable because of the culture of anonymity that Williams described. 

"This isn't just a simple scam; it really is a long con where folks have access to resources from the backing of a nation-state," FBI Special Agent Daniel Polk said, adding that the primary goal for the scammers is "financial gain."

FBI officials believe the stolen money was used to fund North Korea’s weapons program.