How North Korea Built An Army of Hackers: Q&A

North Korea isn’t known for technological sophistication. The isolated country doesn’t have global giants like Apple Inc. or Samsung Electronics Co. and its citizens have limited access to basics like the internet and smartphone apps. Yet the regime of Kim Jong Un has grown increasingly adept at breaking into computer systems around the world for financial gain and strategic benefit. In recent months, his cyber warriors have been linked to stolen U.S.-South Korean military plans, the alleged theft of $60 million from a Taiwan bank and the collapse of a Seoul-based crytocurrency exchange. Even as the U.S. takes aim at North Korea’s development of nuclear weapons, the hackers are becoming more aggressive and skillful in fighting for the nation’s Supreme Dignity.

Kim’s nation has long limited access to the global internet to prevent the free flow of information. Most citizens can only view websites within the country, including government media and agencies. A select few have international access, though their activities are closely monitored. For years, North Korea had only one link to the global internet through state-owned China United Network Communications Ltd., but it secured a second link through a Russian telecommunications company in October. The country probably employs 1,700 state-sponsored hackers, backed by more than 5,000 support staff, according to Fergus Hanson, head of the International Cyber Policy Centre at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute in Canberra.