NK-linked hackers using AI to develop malware targeting S. Korean gov't system: reportA North Korea-linked hacking group is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) technology to develop malicious software targeting the South Korean government's electronic authentication system, a Russian cybersecurity firm said Thursday. Kaspersky said in its latest report its researchers discovered that "HelloDoor," a backdoor malware program first identified last August, was linked to the North Korean hacking group Kimsuky. "We found comments in the code that appear to have been generated by a large language model (LLM) service rather than a human developer. This is based on traces that include emojis used for logging debugging messages," the report said. The report also highlighted new cyberattack tactics employed by the state-sponsored hacking group. Since last year, Kimsuky has been using a feature called "Visual Studio Code Remote Tunneling" instead of deploying malware directly to establish covert remote access to victims' devices, according to the report. The report noted that these advancements pose greater threats, particularly to South Korean government institutions, which haveMay 14, 2026By Yonhap
S. Korea approves N. Korean football team's visit for AFC semisThe unification ministry on Thursday approved a planned visit by a North Korean women's football team to the country, officials said. Pyongyang-based Naegohyang Women's FC is scheduled to arrive in Suwon, some 30 kilometers south of Seoul, on Sunday to face Suwon FC Women in the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Champions League. It will mark the first appearance by a North Korean athletic team on South Korean soil in more than seven years. Under the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, North Korean nationals must receive individual government approval to enter South Korea. The ministry said the approval was issued for the 39 North Korean players and staff members, covering their stay from Sunday through May 24. The North Korean team will leave earlier if eliminated in the semifinals, slated for Wednesday, the official added. Some 200 South Korean civic groups have formed a 3,000-strong cheering squad for the historic inter-Korean match. In a press release, they said they would support both teams "to uphold the spirit of fair play and peace." The squad willMay 14, 2026By Yonhap
Top diplomats of N. Korea, Vietnam agree to advance cooperation: KCNANorth Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui has held talks with her Vietnamese counterpart, Le Hoai Trung, and agreed to deepen bilateral exchanges and cooperation in various fields, Pyongyang's state media reported Thursday. The two foreign ministers held the meeting the previous day in Pyongyang, and discussed a wide range of international and regional issues, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Trung arrived in North Korea on Tuesday as a special envoy of Vietnamese President To Lam. At the meeting, Choe said North Korea hopes to strengthen friendly ties with Vietnam, citing the outcome of summit talks between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Vietnam's Lam in October last year in Pyongyang, the KCNA said Both sides "agreed to further deepen exchanges and cooperation in various areas and strengthen strategic communication as well as mutual support and cooperation between external policy organs of the two countries," the report said. Separately, Kim Song-nam, secretary of the Workers' Party's central committee and chief of its international affairs department, also metMay 14, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea extends retirement age for office workers by 3 years amid population agingNorth Korea has raised the mandatory retirement age for office workers by three years to reflect the country's population aging and demographic changes, according to a North Korean academic paper Wednesday. A revised labor law in 2024 stipulates that the retirement age for office workers eligible for state pension benefits is now 63 for men and 58 for women, according to the paper published in the 2026 first issue of the Journal of the Kim Il Sung University, seen by Yonhap News Agency. Under the country's labor law adopted in 1978, the retirement age had been set at 60 for men and 55 for women, but the revision extended the criteria only for office workers, while leaving that for manual laborers and farmers unchanged. The amendment was adopted by the standing committee of the North's assembly in September 2024, according to the paper. It was previously known that North Korea raised its working-age and voting-age thresholds, but it marked the first confirmation that the country has extended the retirement age only for office workers. "The revisions reflect the evolving pension system andMay 13, 2026By Yonhap
Vietnamese FM visits N. Korea as special envoy for country's leaderVietnam's top diplomat has arrived in North Korea as a special envoy for the country's top leader To Lam, Pyongyang's state media reported Wednesday. Vietnamese Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung and his delegation arrived in North Korea on Tuesday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). They were received at Pyongyang International Airport by Vice Foreign Minister Pak Sang-gil and Vietnamese Ambassador to North Korea Le Ba Vinh. Trung is widely expected to brief North Korean officials on recent political developments in Vietnam, including Lam's continuation as Communist Party general secretary and his concurrent holding of the presidency. The KCNA did not disclose the purpose of the visit. However, the trip comes after South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's visit to Vietnam last month, raising speculation that Hanoi could play a mediating role regarding inter-Korean relations. The visit comes as ties between North Korea and Vietnam have gained momentum following Lam's trip to Pyongyang in October last year, which marked the first visit to North Korea by a Vietnamese top leader iMay 13, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's largest labor group holds 1st congress in 5 yearsNorth Korea's largest group of workers has held its first congress in five years to elect a new leadership and called for efforts to implement the country's five-year economic development plan, state media reported Wednesday. The General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea, affiliated with the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), held its ninth congress Monday to Tuesday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The workers' group is one of the four largest labor organizations under the guidance of the WPK and is mainly aimed at instilling party ideology in the people. At the latest congress, the labor group elected a new leadership and discussed the amendment of the organization's rules and other issues, the KCNA said. The gathering came after North Korea held a key party congress in February to set major policy directions on the military, the economy and other fields for the next five years. Ri Won-jong was elected chairman of the labor group's central committee. Ri was named an alternate member of the WPK central committee in a personnel reshuffle held at the party congressMay 13, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korea's Kim calls for strengthening mortar, howitzer capabilitiesNorth Korean leader Kim Jong-un has stressed the need to strengthen the country's mortar and howitzer forces during his inspection of key munitions factories, state media reported Wednesday. Kim visited several munitions industrial enterprises Monday in a bid to review the implementation of the nation's munitions production plan for the first half of this year, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). At a bullet production factory, the North's leader set forth important tasks of establishing the production system for high-precision multipurpose bullets of different calibers and other bullets. "He repeatedly stressed the need to strengthen the mortar and howitzer forces and advance some important tasks for setting up a specialized artillery production complex and a small-arms production factory," the KCNA said. Kim was accompanied by key defense officials, including Jo Chun-ryong, a party secretary, and Kim Jong-sik, the first director of the ruling party's munitions industry department. North Korea has been ramping up efforts to bolster its military capabilities in line with aMay 13, 2026By Yonhap
N. Korean hackers using AI to find cybersecurity blind spots, Google saysState-sponsored hackers from North Korea and China have demonstrated "significant interest" in leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to detect previously unknown cybersecurity vulnerabilities, Alphabet's Google said in a report Tuesday. "We noted a particular interest from several clusters of threat activity associated with the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)," Google's threat intelligence group said in the report, referring to North Korea by its official name, the DPRK. They have already shown sophisticated approaches to leveraging AI for vulnerability research, the report said, noting a recent attempt from North Korea's hacking group APT45. The North Korean hackers leveraged AI to send thousands of repetitive prompts that recursively analyze different cybersecurity blind spots for possible exploitation, the report elaborated. The report also noted that it used AI to detect hackers from a criminal group using a "zero-day exploit," which they planned to use in a "mass exploitation," and blocked it. Zero-day exploits refer to those inMay 12, 2026By Yonhap
S. Korea to use gov't funds to support cheering squads for N. Korean football team visitThe unification ministry said Tuesday it will provide 300 million won ($202,000) in government funds to support South Korean civic groups planning to cheer at an upcoming match featuring a North Korean women's football team. "We have received a number of requests from civic groups regarding support for the match, and the government has decided to provide financial assistance through the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund, considering the event contributes to mutual understanding between the two Koreas," a ministry official told reporters. Pyongyang-based Naegohyang Women's FC is set to travel to Suwon, some 30 kilometers south of Seoul, on May 20 to face Suwon FC Women in the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Champions League. It will mark the first visit by a North Korean sports team to South Korea in more than seven years. The official said the decision was made the previous day, with the funds earmarked to cover ticket purchases, cheering supplies and banner production. The ministry expects around 2,500 supporters to attend. While cheering chants are largely leftMay 12, 2026By Yonhap
What happened to denuclearizing North Korea?A former National Security Council official who long championed the U.S.’s policy on North Korea’s denuclearization has declared it a “failure,” saying Washington’s “overreliance on sanctions” was a mistake. In a Foreign Affairs essay that drew weeks of editorials and ministerial-level responses in Seoul, Victor Cha, the NSC’s director for Asian Affairs during the George W. Bush administration, argued Washington should pursue a “cold peace” with Pyongyang and face North Korea “as it is.” Cha currently serves as the president of the Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department and Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies based in Washington, D.C. “The United States should not renounce denuclearization, but policymakers must acknowledge that it is now a distant objective. Moving forward, Washington needs a new strategy that does not let the long-term goal of denuclearization get in the way of its more immediate national security needs,” Cha wrote. “Denuclearization is a noble goal, but past policy failures and North Korea’s dogged deterMay 11, 2026By NK News
