Professor: North Korea’s Hacking Capability a Match for CIA’s

A professor of the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) has suggested that North Korea’s level of hacking ability is similar to that of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

At the “Defence Information Security Conference 2005” co-sponsored by the Defense Security Command (DSC) and Korea University, held at Korea University’s Inchon Memorial Hall, professor Byun Jae-jeong of the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) said in a presentation that a mock test of North Korea’s capability for information war showed North Korea’s hacking ability as equivalent to that of the CIA.

Professor Byun claimed, “In particular, North Korea’s hacking power reached a level that could damage the command post of the U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM) and electric power network of the U.S. mainland.”

In addition, Byun maintained that North Korea is currently developing cyber warfare through the internet servers of a variety of countries, including the U.S., it’s also collecting signals information across South Korea from a total of 39 wiretapping and monitoring bases.

Sang-Ho Yun ysh1005@donga.com