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--:-- Annie Minoff: Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power. I'm Annie Minoff.
--:-- Bob McMillan: Hi, everybody. I'm Bob McMillan.
--:-- Annie Minoff: Today, we're talking about a scam that's been making headlines. It's called laptop farming, and it's a way for North Koreans to take jobs as U.S. tech workers and scam millions of dollars from American companies.
--:-- Bob McMillan: That's right. And at the center of this scam is a woman named Christina Chapman. She presented herself as just another influencer on TikTok, but in reality, she was operating a laptop farm that allowed North Koreans to take jobs as U.S. tech workers.
--:-- Annie Minoff: So, let's start with Christina Chapman. What do we know about her?
--:-- Bob McMillan: Well, Christina Chapman was a TikTok influencer who talked about food accountability, political causes, and Japanese boy bands. But what's interesting is that she also talked about her financial situation. She was living in a trailer in Minnesota, and she said she didn't have running water or a working bathroom.
--:-- Annie Minoff: Wow, that's tough. And then, suddenly, her situation turned around. She got a message on LinkedIn from a foreign company looking for a U.S. representative.
--:-- Bob McMillan: That's right. And according to court documents, that message came from North Korean scammers. Chapman agreed to help out, and she became one of what researchers estimate could be dozens of laptop farmers who've cropped up all across the U.S.
--:-- Annie Minoff: So, what is a laptop farmer? How does it work?
--:-- Bob McMillan: A laptop farmer is someone who receives North Koreans' work laptops and helps set them up, so that the scammers can operate them remotely. They also help with logging on in the morning and logging off at night.
--:-- Annie Minoff: That's a pretty crucial role. And Christina Chapman was one of these laptop farmers?
--:-- Bob McMillan: That's right. After she got that LinkedIn message, Chapman became one of these laptop farmers. She received the laptops that these remote workers got issued as part of their jobs, and she set them all up and made them all run from her room.
--:-- Annie Minoff: And what did she do with the laptops?
--:-- Bob McMillan: According to the indictment, Christina Chapman did a lot of things for her clients that were crucial to the whole fraud. She kind of operated like a staffing agency for illegal workers. She helped them get through the HR onboarding process, and she even helped them install remote access tools on the laptops so that the North Koreans could connect to them and pretend to be working from those laptops.
--:-- Annie Minoff: Wow, that's a lot of responsibility. And how much money was she making in this job?
--:-- Bob McMillan: Well, she made okay money. According to the Fed, she brought in paychecks that were paid to the fake workers that worked through her laptop farm, and those paychecks amounted to more than $17 million. And she made a percent of that in fees.
--:-- Annie Minoff: That's a lot of money. And what did she do with it?
--:-- Bob McMillan: Well, she was able to move into a four-bedroom house in Phoenix with a roommate. She even had a yard for her three chihuahuas, and she could afford to treat herself once in a while.
--:-- Annie Minoff: That's a pretty big change from where she was before. But then, in October of 2023, Chapman's life took yet another turn. The FBI knocks on her door, and they seize all these laptops.
--:-- Bob McMillan: That's right. And, you know, that's the end of it. In early 2024, Chapman was arrested and charged with fraud, identity theft, and money laundering. She pleaded guilty, and she's due to be sentenced next month and could face just over nine years in prison.
--:-- Annie Minoff: Wow, that's a pretty serious sentence. And did she know she was doing the bidding of the North Koreans?
--:-- Bob McMillan: Well, there's no evidence to show that she knew she was working with the North Koreans, but there are excerpts of her chats that are included in charging documents. It's pretty clear she knew she was doing something illegal.
--:-- Annie Minoff: That's a pretty big distinction. And what about the companies that were scammed? How are they fighting back against this North Korean remote worker scam?
--:-- Bob McMillan: Well, one thing that companies are doing is trying to bring their employees back to the office. The CSO of Amazon told me that they're requiring employees to come in five days a week, so that they can meet them face-to-face and make sure they're legitimate.
--:-- Annie Minoff: That's a pretty big change. And what about the government agencies? How are they fighting back against this scam?
--:-- Bob McMillan: Well, the FBI is working to crack down on these laptop farms and the North Korean scammers who are behind them. But it's a tough problem to solve, because it's so hard to verify the identity of people who are working remotely.
--:-- Annie Minoff: That's a great point. And finally, what about Christina Chapman? Where is she now?
--:-- Bob McMillan: Well, according to our attorney, Chapman is currently living at a homeless shelter. She's right back where she started.
--:-- Annie Minoff: Wow, that's a pretty sad ending. But I guess it's a reminder that this scam is a big problem, and it's not just about the money. It's about the people who are getting hurt.
--:-- Bob McMillan: That's right. And it's a reminder that we need to be careful about who we're hiring, and how we're verifying their identities.
--:-- Annie Minoff: Thanks for joining us on this episode of The Journal.
--:-- Bob McMillan: Thanks for having me.
--:-- Annie Minoff: If you like the show, follow us on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. We're out every weekday afternoon. Thanks for listening.
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