The U.S. Treasury sanctions individuals and entities related to North Korean IT worker fraud networks

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against 6 individuals and 2 entities, accusing them of participating in a fraud scheme orchestrated by North Korea involving IT workers, with proceeds used to fund North Korean weapons programs.

The sanctioned entities include the North Korean company Amnokgang Technology Development Company and the Vietnamese company Quangvietdnbg International Services Company Limited, whose CEO Nguyen Quang Viet is accused of laundering $2.5 million for the network through cryptocurrency. Do Phi Khanh, Hoang Van Nguyen, Yun Song Guk, Hoang Minh Quang, and York Louis Celestino Herrera are also sanctioned for their alleged involvement in the network. The fraud network operates in North Korea, Vietnam, Laos, and Spain.

The sanctions freeze all assets of the aforementioned individuals and entities in the U.S. and prohibit them from engaging in any financial transactions or business dealings with the United States. OFAC will also add 21 cryptocurrency addresses on the Ethereum and Tron networks to the sanctions list. Chainalysis stated that the North Korean IT worker fraud scheme relies on stolen identities and fabricated identity information to secure positions in global companies and may implant malware in company networks to steal sensitive information.