Arizona Woman’s North Korean Laptop Caper: From Laptops to Lockup in $17M Scam
An Arizona woman was sentenced to 102 months in prison for masterminding a North Korean fake IT worker scheme. Her high-tech “laptop farm” helped North Koreans rake in over $17 million, leaving 309 US companies scratching their heads and checking their firewalls. Remember, folks: keep your laptops close, and your VPNs closer.
Hot Take:
Arizona woman gets busted for impersonating James Bond… but with laptops. Forget “From Russia With Love,” this is “From North Korea With IT Skills!” and instead of a martini, Chapman will be experiencing the prison cafeteria’s finest. A lesson learned: if you’re going to run a laptop farm, make sure it’s not for the North Korean government.
Key Points:
- Christina Marie Chapman ran a laptop farm to assist North Korean IT workers in duping US companies.
- She was caught with 90 laptops and shipped 49 of them overseas, aiding in a $17 million fraud.
- Chapman was sentenced to 102 months in prison and must forfeit over $450,000.
- The scheme exploited 309 US companies, targeting industries from aerospace to luxury retail.
- The US is offering rewards up to $15 million for catching North Korean nationals involved in similar frauds.
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