A North Korean imposter was uncovered, working as a sysadmin at Amazon U.S., after their keystroke input lag raised suspicions with security specialists at the online retail giant. Normally, a U.S.-based remote worker’s computer would send keystroke data within tens of milliseconds. This suspicious individual’s keyboard lag was “more than 110 milliseconds,” reports Bloomberg.
Amazon is commendably proactive in its pursuit of impostors, according to the source report. The news site talked with Amazon’s Chief Security Officer, Stephen Schmidt, about this fascinating new case of North Koreans trying to infiltrate U.S. organizations to raise hard currency for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), and sometimes indulge in espionage and/or sabotage.
I’m never quite sure how to feel about this. On one hand, if the person just wants to make some money and they’re doing the job, why bother them. On the other hand though, I know that anybody who has consistent access to an internet connection in North Korea is almost certainly working for the benefit of the great leader and they aren’t actually seeing any money or benefit for themselves. I just hate that the citizens of North Korea have to suffer and be punished because of their asswipe of a leader.
When you look at the ISS pics of NK during the night, you get a sense of how bad it is for most of the population.
https://www.38north.org/2023/04/a-fresh-look-at-north-korea-at-night/
Maybe they just really like the Dark Sky initiative.
I like how they point out that tiny batch of lights near the coast are NK fishing boats while all the other massive clusters of lights on the ocean are South Korean, Chinese and Japanese fishing boats illegally using spotlights to attract fish.
Always curious to hear how NK has no electricity, but they manage to hack the systems of a trillion dollar conglomerate on the opposite side of the Pacific Ocean.
The contradictions abound.
It kind of amazes me they don’t have better infrastructure. It’s not like they’re shy about forced labor.
You can only do so much with forced labour. They aren’t doing their best, just “enough” to not get punished.
I’m sure plenty of them also use malicious compliance and sabotage stuff to get back at the top brass.
There’s a certain irony in this statement, coming from folks who consume it regularly.
seeing the stars instead of light pollution doesn’t sound like a bad thing on its own
They’re also a security threat. Any opportunity to exfiltrate potentially profitable or leverageable data will be taken. I’d bet they’re used to sniff out vulnerabilities for ransomware attacks too. I definitley identify and agree with the healthy sympathy (I guess empathy if you’re in the states, our leader more than qualifies as an asswipe) for the citizens of North Korea
North Korea intentionally does this to get revenue for the state.
These people are definitely not there just to make some money. And whatever money they make will be used to prop up the genocidal regime.
Eh, this doesn’t sound like the job you would give someone in a prison camp. You’re talking about people that you’re allowing to interact and work regularly with foreigners outside the country. That does not sound like the type of position you trust to a political prisoner. That sounds like a position you put someone of high trust. It’s probably a pretty cushy job as the standards of North Korea go. Sure beats scratching at dirt or working in some godawful arms factory. It’s probably the type of job you need some good family connections in the Party in order to get. Sure, the government takes all the direct monetary benefit of the work, but that is just kindof how Communist systems work. I imagine the people working those jobs have some of the highest standards of living available to people that aren’t senior party leadership.
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North Korea is the result of a genocide carried out by Japan during WW2 and the subsequent genocidal bombing campaign of the US during the Korean war. It was then shut off from the rest of the world as a punishment for successfully resisting US and pro Japanese occupation. What type of leadership and society do we expect to grow out of that? Like, honestly, what type of freedom can be given to people when a country is being cut off from the rest of the world by a large military superpower like the US?
I think people have learned a lot in recent years by looking at Gaza and the conditions the US and Israel have placed on the Palestinians there. I think people understand that Hamas and it’s leadership are the inevitable result of that type of occupation. I hope people can learn from that and realize that there is not something inferior with a place like North Korea. It’s structures of isolation and state control are the inevitable result of the history and current material conditions it faces.
There is a reason that support for Palestine liberation is nearly 100% among the non western world. Because they all see themselves in the Palestinians.
Do I like the leadership of North Korea? No. Do I like the leadership of Hamas? No. But I understand that they won’t change until the threat and oppression of outside powers is stopped.
The west fucks with so many countries and then uses the current instability that the west caused as a reason for why they need to fuck with them more. Venezuela being the latest iteration.
Are you the North Korean Amazon employee? Anyway, North Korea is a CCP vassal state, you invaded South Korea and isolated yourselves.
Given that you seem to know a lot about Korean history. Do you think the Jeju Massacre was justified?
Like, we learn about the Boston Massacre and cheer on American revolutionaries. But for some reason a militant response to an oppressive state filled with Japanese loyalist is considered bad when Koreans do it.
South Korea’s history is largely that of state oppression and a fascist dictatorship. What in your opinion was the reason the North attacked the South? Do you think events unfolded before that? Or did the North just attack because they wanted to prevent kpop?
Full support from China to return the entire Korean peninsula under their control as a vassal state.