South Korea, U.S., Japan co-host forum in Tokyo to counter North IT worker threats

Published: 27 Aug. 2025, 08:48

The U.S. State Department in Washington on April 23. [YONHAP]

 
South Korea, the United States and Japan, together with a U.S. cybersecurity firm, co-hosted a forum this week to help counter threats stemming from North Korea’s overseas dispatch of its IT workers, the State Department said Tuesday.
 
The department and the foreign ministries of South Korea and Japan, in partnership with Mandiant, convened the forum in Tokyo on Tuesday for over 130 attendees from the three governments and industry partners, including freelance work platforms, payment service providers and cryptocurrency companies.
 
 
The event was designed to help public and private sectors strengthen their collective defenses against deceptive North Korean IT worker tactics, the department said. Overseas North Korean workers have long been accused of helping generate revenue for Pyongyang’s nuclear and other weapons programs in breach of UN and U.S. sanctions.
 
“Engaging with these [North Korean] workers exposes companies to theft of sensitive data and assets, reputational harm and legal consequences, as well as increased risk of targeting by malicious North Korean cyber actors,” the department said in a media note.
 
“The United States remains committed to combating North Korea’s sanctions violations and will continue to strengthen collaboration with Japan, the Republic of Korea, and our industry partners to address this threat,” it added, referring to Korea by its official name.

Yonhap