US software developer outsources his own job to China

A man on a six-figure salary at a US critical infrastructure company outsourced his own job to China so he could do nothing all day.

The man spent his working days watching videos of cats, browsing websites and checking Facebook. He paid one fifth of his six figure salary to a third party contractor in China who did all his work for him.

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A security audit carried out by Verizon revealed that the man was using a VPN connection to allow a computer in China access to the network. The employee, in his mid-40s, was described as an "inoffensive and quiet" family man who worked in software development.

When investigators looked into an apparent security breach on the company network from China they found the culprit. Not only had the man outsourced his job to a Chinese consulting firm, he had also FedExed a physical security key to China so they could log in using his credentials.

Further investigation of the man's PC revealed invoices he had created to pay the Chinese contractors doing his job.

Investigators checked his internet history to reveal how he spent his typical working day. It showed he spent most of the morning reading Reddit and watching cat videos. He then took lunch, browsed Ebay, Facebook and Linkedin before emailing management an update on his work and going home.

The man earned several hundred thousand dollars a year, paying just a fifth of his salary to the Chinese firm that actually did his job. His employer was oblivious to his scheme. HR performance records showed that he was an excellent employee. His code was clean, well-written and completed on time.

"Quarter after quarter, his performance review noted him as the best developer in the building," the auditors revealed. The employee no longer works for the company.