Abstract

The DPRK has largely succeeded at hiding its consumer technology. While versions of the desktop operating system, Red Star, have leaked, the mobile equivalent hasn’t, and there remains little knowledge of the content available on the intranet. Let’s fix that!

Previous talks at CCC, including CS in the DPRK, Lifting the fog on RedStar OS, and Woolim: Lifting the fog on DPRK’s latest Tablet, have given us a taste of what technology in Pyongyang looks like. Unfortunately, we’ve ended up in a less-than-optimal stalemate: while technical artifacts are taken outside of the country, there remains a significant hesitation to release them - after all, knowledge is power, and the unknown unknowns outweigh the potential benefits.

We’ll explain the current state of consumer technology in Korea in a bit more depth, and then explore some of the unique quirks. The focus will be on understanding that there is a significant, but not well known, internal market, and that it’s keeping up with the west closer than we might expect.

Recording

Official YouTube mirror: