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   Amazon is reportedly being deluged with North Korean job applicants eager to   
   break inside its walls   
      
   Date:   
   Mon, 22 Dec 2025 17:05:00 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   Amazon detections are up 27%, with Microsoft also worried about North Korean   
   remote job applications.   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   Amazon has blocked over 1,800 suspected North Korean applications from    
   joining the company since April 2024, it has revealed.    
      
   "Their objective is typically straightforward: get hired, get paid, and    
   funnel wages back to fund the regime's weapons programs," company Chief   
   Security Officer Stephen Schmidt wrote in a LinkedIn post .    
      
   The company is using artificial intelligence and human verification to stamp   
   out "anomalies" and "geographic inconsistencies" to rule out such   
   applications, with DPRK-affiliated application detections up 27% this year.   
      
   North Korean nationals are trying to get jobs at Big Tech    
      
   The scams involve real developers using fake or stolen identities to apply    
   for remote jobs at US and European companies, and emerging AI tools are   
   proving a big hit in strengthening their cases. AI and fake social media   
   profiles are being used to strengthen applications, while deepfakes are even   
   being used to (try to) pass video interviews.    
      
   However, even though Amazon has been able to leverage AI to identify even    
   more fake applications, detection is getting harder with scammers hijacking   
   real engineers' unused LinkedIn accounts via stolen credentials.    
      
   While tech may be helping Amazon's security team identify fake applications,   
   some signs are still clear to the human eye. For example, Schmidt says the   
   team often sees applicants citing an education from a university that doesn't   
   offer the claimed course. Some formatting details, like adding the   
   international '+' symbol to phone numbers, also stand out.    
      
   The CSO urges victims of false, DPRK applications to report them to the FBI   
   and local law enforcement.    
      
   Amazon isn't the only company facing these threats. Just six months ago,   
   Microsoft shared similar findings, noting that North Korean remote IT workers   
   are using AI to enhance photos, swap faces on stolen IDs, finetune their job   
   applications and even use voice-changing software.    
      
   According to Microsoft, more than 300 US companies, including Fortune 500   
   firms, unknowing hired such workers between 2020 and 2022.    
      
   Redmond's report suggests monitoring odd behavior, like the use of foreign    
   IPs and VPNs, never appearing on camera in video calls and working strange   
   hours.    
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/amazon-is-being-reportedly-deluged-with   
   -fake-north-korean-job-applicants   
      
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