North Korea appears to have adjusted its restrictive WiFi regulations that blocked smartphones from connecting to anything but approved networks.
For many years, North Korean smartphones have shipped with the ability to connect to Wi-Fi networks, but the Wi-Fi settings menu locked out. This means it’s impossible for users to scan for networks or join them.
We know the Wi-Fi works in the phones because a state-run Wi-Fi network called Mirae is accessible through a dedicated app. The ID of the network is hard coded into the app, which scans for only the Mirae signal.
Once connected, access requires a username, password and Mirae SIM card. (The Mirae Wi-Fi app is described in depth in our Project Reveal report and the code section PDF includes technical details of how it works)
The app is a smart idea for a nation that wants to regulate who can connect to what network. Back in 2014, North Korea banned foreign embassies from operating unapproved Wi-Fi networks, apparently after one embassy allowed Internet access through an open network. The Wi-Fi block on phones followed soon afterwards.
But that might have been loosened a little.
At one of the October trade fairs in Pyongyang, the Mujigae smartphone maker was advertising Wi-Fi connectivity with their phones.
But the biggest surprise was from the Pyongyang Spring Trade Fair that happened in early 2025. Korea Mangyong Trading Company, which sells Jindallae-brand smartphones, was advertising a router called the Mangyong 6000 (만경 6000).
As is seen in the poster, the device offers access to the “national network,” which is how North Korea refers to its intranet, and supports the modern Wi-Fi 6 standard. It also appears to include an embedded media player with support for the three main streaming sites on the intranet: Manbang, Mokran Video, and Life Friend.
It’s not clear from the poster how the device comes configured and if a dedicated app is required in the smartphone, like before, or if phones can now scan and find hotspots, but the ability for individuals to potentially add a Wi-Fi hotspot to their homes hasn’t been seen before.