Seventh United States-Republic of Korea Working Group to Counter Cyber Threats Posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

The United States and the Republic of Korea convened in Seoul the seventh U.S.-Republic of Korea (ROK) Working Group September 5-6 to counter cyber threats posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Led by Deputy Special Representative for the DPRK Seth Bailey and ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director General for Korean Peninsula Policy Lee Jun-il, the meeting underscored the continued close collaboration between the U.S. and ROK governments to disrupt the DPRK’s ability to generate revenue through malicious cyber activity, which it uses to fund its unlawful WMD and ballistic missile programs. The working group included participants from 15 U.S. and ROK government departments, ministries, and agencies.

The United States and the ROK are pursuing a wide range of actions to prevent and disrupt DPRK cryptocurrency heists, address DPRK cyber espionage against the defense sector, stop third party facilitators from enabling DPRK illicit revenue generation, and dismantle DPRK IT worker infrastructure and networks. The Working Group meeting also focused on coordinated diplomatic outreach, information sharing, and capacity building for nations vulnerable to the DPRK cyber threat.