The State Department said North Korea is stealing billions of dollars through cyber attacks and spending it on developing missiles and other weapons of mass destruction. The US government also disclosed that it was sharing information about North Korea’s illegal cyber activities with its allies last year. Reporter Jo Eun-jeong reports.
The State Department told VOA on the 5th that it estimates North Korea stole between $600 million and $1 billion from cyberspace last year.
[국무부 대변인] “The DPRK is using stolen funds from its cyber program to promote its illegal WMD and ballistic missile programs. According to the UN Panel of Experts and multiple industry reports, the DPRK stole anywhere from $1 billion to $2.3 billion between 2017 and 2022 and between $600 million and $1 billion in 2022 alone.”
A State Department spokesman said in response to VOA’s request for comment on the North Korean cyber threat, citing a panel of United Nations experts and several industry reports.
He pointed out that North Korea was promoting its illegal weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs with funds stolen in cyberspace.
He then explained that the US government collects and shares information about North Korea’s illegal cyber activities with its allies through Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) authorizes the US government to conduct targeted surveillance of foreign nationals abroad without a warrant in response to terrorism, espionage, and international cybercrime. If an American has had contact with a foreign target, data on the American may also be recovered.
[국무부 대변인] “As Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research Brett Holmgren noted in his May 30 remarks at CSIS, 702 reports allowed the State Department and other agencies to inform partners and allies about illegal North Korean cyber activities. In 2022, section 702 data was essential to alert the international community, the private sector, and the public to efforts by the DPRK to use information technology workers to fraudulently obtain employment and generate revenue for its nuclear program.”
“As Brett Holmgren, Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Investigations at the Department of State, said in a speech to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on the 30th of last month, the data collected by Department 702 (with the powers granted) help the State Department and other agencies investigate North Korea’s illegal cyber activities. We were able to inform our partners and allies about this.”
He said last year that Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) had been instrumental in helping the US government alert the international community, the private sector, and the public about the illegal employment of North Korean information technology personnel and efforts generate revenue. for its nuclear programme. .
The spokesman also presented the State Department’s efforts to share information about North Korea’s illegal cyber activities with allies as well as civilian experts.
[국무부 대변인] “This event was part of our ongoing efforts to 1) curb the DPRK’s ability to earn revenue for its WMD and ballistic missile programs, and 2) raise awareness of labor rights issues involving DPRK foreign IT workers . DPRK IT workers are taking advantage of the demand for specific IT skills to obtain freelance employment contracts from clients around the world, including in North America, Europe, and East Asia. DPRK IT employees have also used the privileged access gained through these jobs to enable malicious cyber operations.”
A State Department spokesperson said of the “Joint US-ROK Symposium on North Korea’s IT HR Activities” held in San Francisco, California on May 24, “We are trying to curb North Korea’s ability to generate revenue for its mass weapons. destruction and ballistic missile programs, and to protect the rights of North Korean workers.” It is part of an ongoing effort to raise awareness about
“North Korean IT workers are using the demand for specific IT skills to win freelance contracts from clients all over the world, including North America, Europe and East Asia,” he said.
“North Korean IT workers used the access gained through these jobs to carry out malicious cyber operations,” he added.
[국무부 대변인] “During the symposium, industry leaders and experts from the US and ROK governments provided insights into the threat posed by the activities of DPRK IT workers, real-world case studies of DPRK workers fraudulently accessing IT staffing platforms, and guidance to protect business interests and national security from this ongoing DPRK sanctioning evasion tactic.”
A State Department spokesperson said at the symposium, “Industry leaders and experts will provide insight into the threat posed by the activities of North Korean IT workers, real-world examples of North Korean workers corruptly accessing IT workforce platforms, and provides insight into business and national security. of North Korea’s ongoing strategy to evade sanctions. We have provided guidelines that protect our interests.”
This is Cho Eun-jung from VOA News.
