Be careful with IT specialists: Constitutional protection warns of North Korea!

Be careful with IT specialists: Constitutional protection warns of North Korea!

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution has issued a significant warning for German companies. According to the security authorities, companies should be careful when hiring IT specialists who come from North Korea. However, these specialists use freelancer platforms to offer their services, but often disguise their true origin and use fake identities. The authority emphasizes that the commissioning of such workers entails considerable risks, including reputation damage and the risk of sanctions. There is also a risk that valuable company data will be robbed.

The warning is no coincidence. Last year, the US medium "The Daily Beast" reported that North Korean IT specialists are active in online platforms under false preliminary walls. The FBI also actively pointed out the threats that can occur deceptively real profiles. It became known that with the help of fake identifications and documents, these IT specialists are trying to obtain orders in western countries. This not only serves the personal profit, but could help the North Korean regime to fund the financing of weapons programs.

The methods of cybercrime

The North Korean cybercriminals act in a complex environment. By creating fake profiles and spending a freelancer from Southeast Asia or Eastern Europe, they camouflaged. Often they can be paid in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or via payment services such as PayPal, which makes it difficult to trace. The constitutional protection authority thus recommends that companies to rethink their selection process and to proceed more carefully when commissioning IT service providers. HR managers should also pay attention to interviews personally or via video conferences in order to be able to better check the identity of the applicants.

In visual conversations, it could be important to pay attention to subtle information, such as unusual eye movements or long breaks that could indicate possible discrepancies in the given answers. This additional care could help companies to recognize the serious threats that are associated with working with possibly dangerous IT experts.

The security warning of the protection of the constitution not only offers insights into the machinations of North Korean cybercrime, but also reveals the responsibility of corporate culture. In view of the current geopolitical tensions and threats from cyber attacks, companies must proactively act in order to protect their internal data and to take into account the requirements of the new digital world.

How the situation continues and whether other companies will integrate this information into their personnel decision processes remains to be seen. The risks that are in the use of international freelancer platforms are significant and companies should strive to take suitable measures in order to secure themselves from possible dangers.

For further information and a detailed view of this topic, interested parties can be interested in the article at www.rhein-zeitung.de read.