they were spread across the state and heavily concentrated near DFW.

By the numbers:

185+ devices were seized during the operation

40 locations were raided in Texas between Sept. 21 and Sept. 25

$800 million is the estimated amount generated by North Korean IT workers in 2024

85% to 90% of worker's salaries funneled directly to the North Korean government

Ryan Raybould

What they're saying:

Authorities stressed that the Americans hosting these devices cannot claim ignorance.

 If you're an individual, and you have 50 laptops in your family room, you're doing something wrong,  Raybould said.  It's frankly ridiculous. And so I would also encourage folks that if you think it's appropriate to host 30 to 40 laptops in your family room and then claim to the United States government that you didn't know what you're doing was wrong, that argument is completely gobbledygook. 

FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Joe Rothrock highlighted the measures operatives take to conceal their identities.

 They may use stolen identities of unsuspecting Americans to obtain U.S. IT workers' jobs,  Rothrock said.  In other instances, they pay individuals to use their identities or to complete other tasks, including appearing at interviews, verifying stolen identities, shipping packages, hosting laptops, and completing drug testing or fingerprinting. 

What's next:

The investigation is ongoing.

Authorities expect to issue federal indictments against the U.S.-based facilitators.

The FBI is continuing to identify additional individuals involved in the scheme.