North Korea has replaced radio wave detectors installed in regions along the China-North Korea border with the latest models.
The authorities use the radio wave detectors to crack down on illegal mobile phones.
According to a Daily NK source in Yanggang Province, North Korean authorities recently replaced the radio wave detectors in border regions such as Hyesan and Samjiyon as part of its efforts to ferret out locals who use illegal foreign-made mobile phones.
The Ministry of State Security’s Bureau 10, the division in charge of radio wave surveillance, replaced the equipment under top secrecy from Oct. 1 to Oct. 15.
The source said that given how the ministry upgraded its detectors along the border to the latest models, it seems the ministry will once again wage a fierce war to root out users of illegal foreign-made mobile phones.
In fact, since the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of State Security has been conducting a sweeping “mop-up war” and “war of annihilation” in border regions against people who use illegal foreign-made mobile phones.
The Ministry of State Security has arrested many border residents on espionage charges, subjecting them to forced labor of varying severity. In serious cases, the ministry has even dragged off locals to political prison camps.
With border residents continuing to use illegal mobile phones to contact China, South Korea or other countries despite these efforts, the Ministry of State Security appears to have replaced its existing radio wave detectors with high-end ones capable of tracking the location of mobile phone users more quickly and accurately.
A defector who came to South Korea in 2019 told Daily NK that given how the Ministry of State Security installed the old radio wave detectors several years ago, it may have been time to replace them.
“In fact, if the ministry replaced them with new, highly capable radio wave detectors, it means they want to root out more Chinese-made mobile phone users, and even if not, the rumor that it installed new devices would have been effective in generating fear that the authorities will catch people who use Chinese-made mobile phones,” he said.
In fact, in Hyesan, people are saying that they “must never call someone first,” based on a rumor that with international calls and WeChat, the radio wave detectors catch the caller before the receiver.
On the other hand, some people reportedly express skepticism, believing talk of the new radio wave detectors’ capabilities is “widely exaggerated.”
However, given that it is difficult to confirm how good the new radio wave detectors are, and the fact that there have been few arrests of illegal mobile phone users since the upgrade, people are reportedly being careful about using illegal phones.
According to the source, various people are saying: “The authorities tell us to tighten our belt and practice self-reliance because they have no money, but it seems they have enough money to buy radio wave detectors,” and, “The old radio wave detectors were perfectly capable for weeding out illegal mobile phone users, so I don’t understand why they bought and installed new devices using money they said they didn’t have.”
Meanwhile, the source said the authorities simultaneously replaced the old radio wave detectors with new ones along the entire border not only in Yanggang Province, but also North Pyongan Province, Chagang Province and North Hamgyong Province.
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