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North Korea’s first multi-channel IPTV service apparently launched
North Korea’s Manbang Supply Center (만방보급소) appears to have launched a multi-channel Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) streaming service, providing 20 channels of linear television across the country’s internal data networks. It is the first cable TV-like service in the country and represents a significant expansion in entertainment options for subscribing households. Alongside electronic payment services,…
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Inside Pyongyang’s new gaming center
Some fascinating photos of the new cyber gaming center recently toured by Kim Jong Un have been posted to X. The photos show the center, located in the new Hwasong District of Pyongyang, is packed with gaming PCs and computer games from overseas. One image shows numerous gaming stations, each apparently equipped with PCs, monitors…
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Three things to read, from October 2025
Each month, NK TechLab highlights three interesting or important articles that provide a window into the use of technology in North Korea or by the state. This month, digital grain vouchers, a report on North Korea’s cyber operations, and a North Korean feature phone. Daily NK: North Korea launches app-based digital grain voucher system to…
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A Visual Look at Smartphone Penetration in North Korea
How many North Koreans are using smartphones? It’s one of the most common questions about technology in North Korea, but it’s also one that is very difficult to answer. It used to be straightforward. After Egypt’s Orascom launched Koryolink, North Korea’s first 3G network in December 2008, it would publish detailed quarterly statistics. The data,…
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The Importance of Foreign Information Access in North Korea
For decades, North Koreans have relied on illicit foreign information to provide news, information, entertainment, knowledge and — perhaps most importantly — ideas they would otherwise never have access to. But since the beginning of this year, the amount of radio and television programming being beamed into North Korea has plummeted. Radio broadcasting is down…
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A Nascent Fintech Industry Appears in Pyongyang
Electronic payments appear to be gaining popularity in North Korea, thanks to the spread of smartphones, pressure from the state, and an increasingly competitive market for smartphone apps. Several competing electronic payment wallets are in operation in Pyongyang and, to a lesser extent, across the country, according to an examination of recent North Korean smartphones,…
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Three things to read, from September 2025
Each month, NK TechLab will publish a review of three interesting or important articles from the month that provide a window into the use of technology in North Korea. This month, surveillance at a LAN café in Pyongyang, more radio broadcasts to North Korea are halted, and North Korean IT workers look beyond the tech…
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Three things to read, from August 2025
Each month, NK TechLab will publish a review of three interesting or important articles from the month that provide a window into the use of technology in North Korea. This month, crackdowns on information leakage and Chinese electronic products. Rimjingang: Key Institutions Replace Chinese PCs with Domestic Products – Widespread Virus Infections and Information Leak…
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North Korea retargets radio jamming
North Korea has retargeted its radio jamming program after the cessation in early July of propaganda broadcasts by South Korea’s National Intelligence Service. On July 30, jamming was observed against KBS Hanminjok Radio (KBS 한민족방송) and Voice of Freedom (자유의소리방송), which is run by the Ministry of National Defence. North Korea jams programs by deliberately broadcasting…
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North Korea Has Scored a Major Victory in the Battle Against Information
The propagandists and censors in North Korea have been battling foreign information for decades and just scored one of their biggest victories. They didn’t need to do anything. The US and South Korean governments did it for them.
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North Korea’s Revised Radio Wave Control Law
A key North Korean law that provides the technical basis for much of the country’s censorship of foreign broadcast and communications networks has been expanded in scope. The Radio Wave Control Law (전파관리법) previously covered radio equipment but a revised version published in 2023 includes electronic devices, including computers. The revisions add a lot more…
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Publishing new North Korean laws
NK TechLab, a new project from 38 North, will be creating and publishing data obtained from North Korean technology that may be useful to scholars and researchers. Recently, the project gained access to a North Korean smartphone that included an app called “조선민주주의인민공화국 버저,” which is a database of North Korean laws current to mid-2024.…
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North Korea’s Health App Offers Medicines on Demand
North Korea’s Ministry of Health has launched an online drug and medical product delivery service based in a smartphone app. The app is called “건강” (Health) and also allows patients to consult medical practitioners without going to a hospital and consult a database of common medical questions and answers. The app underscores how North Korea…
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North Korea Revised its Space Law to Permit Military Use
North Korea revised its Space Development Law (우주개발법) in 2022 to allow for use of space for national defense purposes. Specifically, it removed sentences that previously committed to only peaceful uses of space and opposed the militarization of space and now threatens countermeasures on countries that attempt “unfriendly acts” on its space program. It expands…
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Welcome to NK TechLab
The North Korea Tech Lab is a new center for investigation and analysis into how North Korea uses technology to serve and suppress its citizens. Today, North Korea is increasingly employing technology for both the benefit and detriment of its citizens. For example, one the one hand, smartphones provide many with a way to stay…
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North Korea’s Smartphone Market Expands as Border Restrictions End
The variety of smartphones available in North Korea has more than doubled in the last two years, and at least 10 companies are now fighting for the attention of consumers. Some companies have even started following the marketing strategies of overseas competitors by offering multiple versions at different price points, giving consumers more choice than…
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What We Learned Inside a North Korean Internet Server: How Well Do You Know Your Partners?
A misconfigured North Korean Internet cloud server has provided a fascinating glance into the world of North Korean animation outsourcing and how foreign companies might be inadvertently employing North Korean companies on information technology (IT) projects. The incident also underlines how difficult it is for foreign companies to verify their outsourced work is not potentially…
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Digital Surveillance in North Korea: Moving Toward a Digital Panopticon State
Digital technology is progressively entering into different facets of life in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea) and reshaping the landscape of its society, especially in Pyongyang. Smartphones can now facilitate electronic payments; set-top boxes offer additional TV and streaming options; cameras keep watch on traffic in major cities; and electronic…