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North Korean programmers used a hosted laptop to freelance online, says FBI
The US and South Korean governments have been increasingly sounding an alarm about the unwitting hiring of North Korean IT workers through online platforms. Court papers unsealed this week detail the lengths to which the IT workers go to disguise their North Korean affiliation. The story begins in August 2019 when the Federal Bureau of…
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Red Star 4 appears in a workplace learning system
The newest version of North Korea’s home-grown Linux operating system has been put to use in a new terminal system for use in study rooms that exist at many companies and institutions. Red Star OS version 4 (붉은별 4.0) is used in the system that was produced by Achim Computer (아침콤퓨터합영회사), according to the North…
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Kim Chaek University ranks 8th in international programming contest
Students from Kim Chaek University of Technology have finished in 8th position in the International Collegiate Programming Contest. The annual event pits students from the world’s top universities against each other writing computer programs to solve problems. It’s one of the few international events that North Korea takes part in and is a general guide to…
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North Korea’s anti-virus software contains Trend Micro code, say researchers
SiliVaccine, a North Korean anti-virus application for Windows, includes elements of code lifted from an anti-virus engine produced by Japan’s Trend Micro, according to a detailed analysis of the software by researchers at computer security company Check Point. The software also deliberately fails to alert the user if a specific piece of malware is detected and…
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More on SiliVaccine, North Korea’s anti-virus scanner
Several years ago I obtained a copy of SiliVaccine, an anti-virus scanner developed in North Korea. Recently I’ve been working with Mark Lechtik at Check Point Software who has done a deep technical analysis of the application. There are some interesting findings and we’ll be providing more details on those in the coming weeks. Mark…
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Red Star 3.0 Desktop – The install
The operating system is being offered as a 2.6 gigabyte ISO file, which means it will look like a CD or DVD install disc to most modern operating systems. The operating system can be directly installed from the ISO file and requires about 10 gigabytes of disc space. I installed mine inside a Virtual Machine…
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Red Star 3.0 Desktop finally becomes public
The latest version of North Korea’s home-grown desktop operating system, Red Star Linux 3.0, was uploaded to BitTorrent on Monday. We first got a look at the operating system almost a year ago when screenshots were posted online. A link to a download file was included in a message on Pastebin that was uploaded by someone who goes…
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SiliVaccine – North Korea’s anti-virus scanner
In a country where most computers aren’t connected to the Internet, an anti-virus scanner might not seem like much of a necessity. But since 2002, programmers in the country have been working on SiliVaccine, a home grown anti-virus application that is now in its fourth version. I was recently sent a current version that runs…
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North Korea proposes expanding work with Russian IT companies
A North Korean state IT company has approached Russia’s Information and Computer Technologies Industry Association (APKIT) proposing a greater working relationship with Russian IT companies. The country apparently wants to win business from Russian companies and the Pyongyang Kwangmyong IT Corp. held talks with APKIT in July and August, according to the APKIT. As part of those…
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Glorious Leader video game plots North Korean tale
An Atlanta-based start-up game studio has set North Korea as the ambitious target of its first video game. Moneyhorse Games revealed some demonstration gameplay video and screenshots from the game, “Glorious Leader,” earlier this week. It’s due out towards the end of 2014 and will be available on Android and possibly other platforms, according to Jeff…
