Threat Management

North Korean defectors PII exposed

A South Korean Unification settlement camp computer was hacked exposing the names of almost 1,000 North Korean defectors.

The hacked computer was located in the North Gyeongsang resettlement center with the attacker gaining access to the defector's names, birth dates and addresses being compromised, the BBC reported. At this point, the hacker’s origin is not known, but North Korea has a long track record of launching cyberattacks against its southern neighbor.

The intrusion was discovered on December 19 when malware was found on the computer, but the BBC reported that South Korean officials believe the issue is contained only to this camp. However, there is some concern that those exposed could face retribution from North Korea.

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