North Korea’s primary internal security and counterintelligence agency, known domestically as the bowibu. Established in its current form in 1973, the agency reports directly to the Supreme Leader and operates outside the normal judicial system. It is responsible for political surveillance, suppression of dissent, management of political prison camps, monitoring of foreign media consumption, counter-defection operations, and investigation of economic crimes. In early 2026, the agency was renamed the State Information Bureau, reportedly to project a more institutionalized image while expanding its intelligence mandate.
Tag: ministry of state security
N. Korean teachers questioned after criticizing ‘two hostile states’ doctrine while...
Teachers who criticized new textbooks and maps erasing Korean reunification references were summoned by state security after their comments at a drinking party were...
N. Korean families lose life savings after remittance broker arrest
Families of North Korean defectors have suffered significant financial losses after state security officers in Musan county, North Hamgyong province, arrested an illegal remittance...
N. Korea tightens surveillance after Kim’s China visit
North Korean authorities have dramatically intensified surveillance of the population following Kim Jong Un's visit to China and the regime's founding anniversary on Sept....
N. Korean political prison population rises as cultural crackdowns intensify
The number of inmates in North Korea's political prison camps has increased slightly as authorities apply the "Reactionary Thought and Culture Rejection Law" and...
Kim Jong Un orders major purge of N. Korea’s secret police...
A directive personally signed by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been issued to the Ministry of State Security regarding the reorganization of...
North Korean agents pressure Chinese phone users as quarterly reviews loom
State security agents in North Korea's border region are ramping up efforts to catch Chinese mobile phone users ahead of their upcoming quarterly performance...
Fear of purges spreads as North Korea targets veteran China traders
North Korea is probing trading companies in North Pyongan province in charge of trade with China. The move appears aimed at tightening the regime's...
N. Korea’s Kim Jong Un orders workplace safety reforms after steel...
When a serious accident occurred at a North Korean steel mill on a national holiday, Kim Jong Un was immediately briefed about what happened.
"Amid...
From restaurants to IT: How China is restricting North Korean business...
While relations between North Korea and China seem to be improving, things aren't quite back to normal. The Chinese government is now restricting North...
Pyongyang intensifies monitoring with written pledges for informants
North Korea is actively considering a plan to increase security personnel monitoring its overseas workers by up to four times current levels, particularly those...
