North Korea Tech Explained

North Korea Tech
Type:Technology analysis related to North Korea
Language:English
Country Of Origin:United States
Author:Martyn Williams
Current Status:Active

North Korea Tech is a US-based blog authored by British journalist Martyn Williams which covers consumer electronics and technology developments in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.[1] [2] It was established in 2010.[3] North Korea Tech is based in Washington DC.[4] [5] The site is affiliated with 38 North.[6] [7]

Background

According to Williams, he was inspired to start the blog after a 15-year stint as a Tokyo-based correspondent for IDG News Service during which he observed the growing "wealth, knowledge and prosperity gap between North and South Korea." About his interest in the country, he said "North Korea appears today an even more difficult country to understand than the USSR ever was, thus my interest as a journalist."[8] As of 2016, the website received about 20,000 visits a month.

The site has covered North Korean cell phones, satellites, internet domains, operating systems, missile technology, and online TV services.[9] North Korea Tech has often been cited by international media, government reports, and academics researching North Korea.[10] This has included coverage by Agence France-Presse,[11] Vice Magazine,[12] and TechCrunch.[13] It has also been cited by South Korean media, such as Yonhap and The Dong-A Ilbo.

North Korea Tech was the victim of a DDoS attack in early 2016.[14] On March 24, 2016, the site was censored in South Korea by the Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC) due to alleged violations of South Korea's National Security Act, a law which bans "praising, sympathizing or cooperating with North Korea". Williams appealed the ban, saying the site "doesn't seek to glorify or support North Korea". The KCSC said that the site was blocked due to linking to North Korean websites and posting videos of North Korean state media. Jillian York of the Electronic Frontier Foundation stated that "The blocking of North Korea Tech is, on face, an overbroad application of a law that in itself is in direct contrast to the principle of freedom of expression". Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch Asia called the block "harmful to rights and counter-productive".[15] An appeal of the ban was successful in 2017 with legal assistance from Open Net Korea.[16] [17]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: North Korea Tech . dead . https://archive.today/20140126111801/http://www.nknews.org/content_source/north-korea-tech/ . January 26, 2014 . January 23, 2014 . NK News.
  2. News: Moon. Sung-hui. Gerin. Roseanne. Translated by Yunju Kim. April 27, 2015. North Korea Ramps Up Circulation of National Daily. Radio Free Asia. November 4, 2021.
  3. News: Lee. Youkyung. April 5, 2016. UK journalist to appeal as Seoul blocks his site on N. Korea. The Associated Press. August 15, 2021.
  4. News: Smith. Hazel. March 16, 2017. Review: North Korea's Hidden Revolution: How the Information Underground is Transforming a Closed Society, by Jieun Baek. Times Higher Education. November 4, 2021.
  5. News: Power. John. June 22, 2017. North Korea Tech and the internet censorship of the most wired country on Earth. NK News. live. August 15, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20170622084610/https://www.nknews.org/2017/06/north-korea-tech-and-the-internet-censorship-of-the-most-wired-country-on-earth/. June 22, 2017.
  6. Web site: Affiliates. August 15, 2021. 38 North.
  7. News: Kasulis. Kelly. December 4, 2017. North Korean college coders beat Stanford University in a 2016 competition. Here's why that matters.. Mic. November 4, 2021.
  8. Web site: Williams. Martyn. About North Korea Tech. January 23, 2014. North Korea Tech.
  9. News: Choi. Ha-young. May 4, 2016. North Korea Tech website to remain blocked in S.Korea. NK News. November 4, 2021.
  10. News: O'Carroll. Chad. April 25, 2017. Court ruling could see block of North Korea Tech website reversed in South Korea. NK News. November 4, 2021.
  11. Web site: August 14, 2013. North Korea unveils 'secure, homemade' smartphone. January 23, 2014. Sydney Morning Herald.
  12. Web site: Mead. Derek. 2013. Anonymous' Attack on North Korea Didn't Go As Well As Planned. dead. January 23, 2014. Vice Magazine. March 4, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304054337/http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/anonymous-attack-on-north-korea-didnt-go-as-well-as-planned.
  13. Web site: Shu. Catherine. March 26, 2013. North Korea Cuts Off 3G Access For Foreign Visitors Just Weeks After Allowing It. January 23, 2014. TechCrunch.
  14. News: Williams. Martyn. January 30, 2016. DDOS over, North Korea Tech is back. North Korea Tech. November 4, 2021.
  15. News: O'Carroll. Chad. April 4, 2016. Two N.Korea-focused websites blocked by S.Korean government. NK News. November 4, 2021.
  16. Web site: Williams. Martyn. November 18, 2017. North Korea Tech wins Internet blocking case. August 15, 2021. North Korea Tech.
  17. News: 2021. South Korea. Freedom House. November 4, 2021.

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