The latest smartphones in North Korea cost hundreds of dollars, with some models costing nearly USD 1,000. While such prices are a significant burden on North Koreans, the phones are still popular. “The Chongsong 234, Chongsong 222 and Samtaesong 8 are the most popular smartphones these days,” a source in Yanggang Province told Daily NK on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity. “They are popular because they are the latest models.” North Korea unveiled the new Chongsong 234 and 222 at the Light Industry Development-2023 trade show last October. The Samtaesong first appeared on Korea Ce ..read more

Public demand for telephone services in North Korea has surged recently, prompting the North Pyongan Province Post and Telecommunications Bureau to bring forward its annual revenue targets, Daily NK has learned. “Smuggling and travel have increased in the border areas following the gradual easing of border restrictions since last year. With more goods in transit and a corresponding increase in demand for telecommunications, the provincial Post and Telecommunications Bureau is moving to meet its annual revenue targets in the first quarter of the year,” a source in the province told Daily NK on ..read more

North Korea remains unconnected to the digital world.  The latest Digital 2024 Global Reports showed that only fewer than 1,000 people in North Korea have access to the Internet. This small group of people is likely composed of foreign expatriates and those coming from North Korea’s political elite. The report also showed that there are currently 7.51 million mobile connections in North Korea or 28.7% of its total population. This reflects a 2.8% increase or around 260,000 new mobile connections from the start of 2023 until January 2024. Although the majority of North Koreans are not onli ..read more

A North Korean organization under the Workers’ Party has reportedly created thousands of illegal online gambling websites in cooperation with an unidentified South Korean cybercrime ring, the ROK’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) told Yonhap news agency on Wednesday. The investigation appears to be ongoing. In the process, the North Korean organization allegedly received KPW 6.5 million (USD 5,000) for each created gambling website and KPW 4 million (USD 3,000) per month to maintain them. In addition, the NIS suspects that the organization received another KPW 1.8 million to 6.5 million (U ..read more

North Korea’s government has been forcing people to update the operating systems (OS) of their phones as part of efforts to prevent the spread of external information, Daily NK has learned.  Speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, a source in North Korea told Daily NK on Dec. 22 that the government’s efforts to update the OS of the country’s domestically produced smartphones started in June.  “People have had to update their phones at mobile phone service centers or mobile communication centers near their residences or workplaces,” the source said. “Everyone has to g ..read more

The spy satellite recently placed into orbit by North Korea carried a camera imported from Japan, Daily NK has learned. A source in North Korea who is familiar with the arms industry told Daily NK on Dec. 7 that the Malligyong-1, which was launched on Nov. 21, was equipped with an optical camera manufactured in Japan. This camera was of better quality than the one used in a failed satellite launch on May 1, the source said. After the failure of North Korea’s first spy satellite launch, the South Korean military recovered wreckage of the launch vehicle in open waters off the west coast of the K ..read more

North Koreans need their own electronic certificates when they make digital payments, Daily NK has learned. “When you pay fees in the digital media player Manbang, you need your own electronic certificate,” a source in North Korea told Daily NK on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons. “The method uses unique individual identifiers to verify users and approve payments for registration and quarterly fees.”  According to an instruction manual for the payment app Ullim obtained by Daily NK, users must copy their private electronic certificate to a storage device and ..read more

After unveiling a new smartphone called the “Hwawon” last month, North Korea has been selling the product through phone-based orders, Daily NK has learned. Speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, multiple sources inside North Korea told Daily NK Monday that while the Hwawon has been launched, the phones are not on display shelves in Pyongyang and are even harder to find outside of the capital. New smartphone models called the Hwawon 301 and Hwawon 201 were unveiled Oct. 25 as part of Light Industry Development-2023, an event held at the light industry hall of the Three Revolut ..read more

North Korea has recently been applying the market exchange rate, rather than the official exchange rate, to transactions with electronic prepaid cards holding foreign currency. With less value lost in transactions, there has reportedly been an increase in card usage by foreign currency holders in the country. Speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, a source in South Pyongan Province told Daily NK on Nov. 9 that North Korea has recently been encouraging its citizens to use the prepaid cards by applying market rates when foreign currency is exchanged. The apparent goal is for ba ..read more

North Korea has recently begun importing second-hand telecommunications devices from China to replace existing base transceiver station equipment in several major cities, Daily NK has learned.  Speaking on condition of anonymity due to security reasons, a Daily NK source in North Korea said Monday that “starting in early October, the authorities started to gradually replace the telecoms and retransmission equipment in base transceiver stations with imported equipment from China. The move is part of efforts to meet the Eighth Party Congress’s call to innovate the communications sector by r ..read more