2024-08-01 21:31:38
Interview with Yoon Oh-joon, 3rd Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service
“Acquiring micro-satellite technology from Russian company… Cannot rule out collecting game-changing technology
“When Bitcoin Rises, People Turn to Virtual Assets… 2.4 Trillion Won Steal in 8 Years, Used for Weapons Development”
《National Intelligence Service Cyber Director Yoon Oh-joon, 3rd Deputy Director: “Hacking from China Increases by 50% This Year”
In an interview with the Dong-A Ilbo on the 31st, Yoon Oh-joon, 3rd Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service, stated, “(North Korea) hacking attacks targeting not only our construction and machinery sectors but also local government officials have increased.” It is said that these movements were detected after North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un formalized the “20×10 Policy for Local Development” in January. Yoon stated, “North Korea began to seriously steal virtual assets in 2016,” and estimated that the amount stolen from then until February of this year was “a total of 2.4 trillion won.” He also stated that the scale of cyberattacks from China “increased by 50% in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year.” The 3rd Deputy Director is in charge of science information and cyber at the National Intelligence Service.
“There are circumstances in which North Korea has stolen information and technology related to the defense and military industries from (its ally) Russia and sold them back to (Russia).”
Yoon Oh-joon, 3rd Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service, said this in an interview with the Dong-A Ilbo on the 31st. North Korea and Russia have recently become closer, signing a new treaty that elevates their relationship to the level of a military alliance. However, behind the scenes, North Korea is upgrading its own technology with military technology stolen from Russia through hacking, and reselling the reprocessed technology to Russia as a means of making money. This can also be interpreted to mean that North Korea’s economic situation is that much more impoverished due to the effects of strengthened sanctions against the North.
Vice Minister Yoon assessed that “North Korea has stolen 2.4 trillion won worth of virtual assets since 2016 (as of February of this year).” This is the first time that the government authorities have specifically disclosed the amount stolen from 2016, when North Korea began full-scale virtual asset hacking, to this year. Vice Minister Yoon also said, “North Korea is expanding hacking against our construction and machinery industries and local government officials.” Intelligence authorities previously revealed that North Korean cyberattacks are being carried out in a way that Chairman Kim Jong-un personally commands, and this year, Chairman Kim has put forward the “20×10 Policy for Local Development” as a key project. This means that North Korean authorities are focusing their hacking capabilities on areas related to this policy.
The 3rd Deputy Director of the National Intelligence Service is a vice-ministerial level official who oversees science, information, and cyberspace. The interview was conducted at the National Cyber Security Cooperation Center in Pangyo 2nd Techno Valley, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do.
– Did North Korea also steal technology related to ‘game changers’ such as cutting-edge weapons?
“North Korea is hacking not only large defense companies but also small and medium-sized partner companies with weak security to collect weapons development technology in all directions. It cannot be ruled out that game-changing technologies are included.”
―North Korea is known to hack even its ally, Russia.
“There is evidence that North Korea, while providing war supplies to Russia, is stealing Russian defense and military-related information and technology and selling them back. It is also known that they hacked into Sputnik, a Russian satellite development company, and obtained technology related to micro-satellites.”
-What areas of cyberattacks has North Korea specifically targeted this year?
“We need to keep an eye on Kim Jong-un’s instructions and interests. After Kim Jong-un formalized the ‘Local Development 20×10 Policy’ in January, we have seen an increase in hacking attacks targeting not only our construction and machinery sectors but also local government officials. We believe that the purpose of hacking our local governments is to improve or upgrade administrative efficiency at the city and county level.”
-How much virtual assets has North Korea seized so far?
“It is estimated to be worth a total of 2.4 trillion won. North Korea has been seriously stealing virtual assets since 2016, when Bitcoin emerged. It is believed that the stolen funds are being used to develop weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and for military provocations.”
-The amount stolen is less than the private security company’s estimate.
“We are only including cases where the theft was ultimately confirmed to be by North Korea through cooperation with domestic and foreign investigative and intelligence agencies. If we include all cases suspected to be by North Korea (like private companies), innocent victims may arise during the process of freezing and sanctioning virtual assets, so we are approaching this cautiously.”
-How do you block virtual assets stolen by North Korea?
“We are working hard to freeze them so they cannot be cashed out. There are also ways to make the money laundering process more cumbersome and increase transaction costs by using over-the-counter brokers with high commissions. This is to reduce the money flowing into North Korea. It has only been two or three years since the government began to take full-scale measures to counter theft of virtual assets.”
-How much have cyberattacks from China increased?
“As of the first half of this year, it has increased by 50% compared to the same period last year. China is focusing on obtaining technological data such as semiconductors and communications through cyberattacks in order to contain the U.S.’s advanced technology.”
―Last July, the National Intelligence Service announced that it would conduct a full investigation of Chinese equipment supplied to our government agencies.
“(The government) investigated about 30,000 Chinese information technology (IT) products introduced to our government agencies. As a result, we confirmed vulnerabilities that could allow hackers to access hundreds of closed-circuit televisions (CCTVs) and network equipment, including weather observation equipment. However, there were no actual (hacking) attack attempts or data leaks.”
– Has it been confirmed that North Korean hackers have utilized artificial intelligence (AI) technology?
“We have confirmed that North Korea has used ChatGPT to search for hacking targets, such as experts on North Korea issues and think tank staff in South Korea. We believe that this was a process of testing ChatGPT’s functions. North Korea will likely focus on developing other technologies for ‘zero-day attacks’ (cyber attacks using unknown vulnerabilities) rather than known AI technologies.”
– Did North Korean IT personnel attempt to get undercover jobs at domestic companies?
“There was an attempt last year, but fortunately it did not reach the final stage of employment. However, there are many cases of fake employment targeting overseas companies. This is because remote interviews and work are active and identity verification is relatively lax. Similar cases may occur in our companies as well, so caution is needed in the recruitment stage.”
-How are you responding to prevent cyber attacks?
“We are strengthening public-private, inter-ministerial collaboration. For international cooperation, the National Intelligence Service will host the Cyber Summit Korea·CSK 2024 information security event in Seoul in September. We will also conduct the international cyber exercise (APEX) for the first time to focus on training mutual support and response systems between countries in the event of a large-scale cyber crisis.”
Reporter Shin Jin-woo [email protected]
Reporter Shin Gyu-jin [email protected]
2024-08-01 21:31:38