{"id":323007,"date":"2026-02-25T11:55:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T02:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/?p=323007"},"modified":"2026-04-07T13:37:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T04:37:10","slug":"north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/","title":{"rendered":"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">A remittance broker in Hyesan, Ryanggang province, who had worked as a state security informant for years, was arrested by state security officers in mid-January. The arrest has fueled public criticism that officers are turning on their own informants to pad performance numbers ahead of the Ninth Party Congress.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">&#8220;One Hyesan resident who worked as a remittance broker and state security informant has been detained after being arrested by state security officers in mid-January,&#8221; a source in Ryanggang province, who requested anonymity for security reasons, told Daily NK recently. &#8220;People were shocked when they learned that even a person who acted as a state security informant was arrested.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">According to the source, the broker-informant, identified simply as &#8220;A,&#8221; was previously arrested by state security officers in 2018 for using a Chinese-made mobile phone. At the time, officers considered charging her with spying after finding a South Korean number on her phone, and rumors circulated that she would be sent to a political prison camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">&#8220;A&#8221; avoided that fate by paying a substantial bribe to state security officers, who released her on the condition that she work as an informant. In that role, &#8220;A&#8221; reported to state security agents on the movements and foreign contacts of families of North Korean defectors while continuing her work as a remittance broker, delivering money sent by defectors living in South Korea and China to their families still in North Korea.<\/p>\n<h4 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"><strong>Informant&#8217;s expanding operations drew scrutiny<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">&#8220;A&#8217;s&#8221; troubles began when she expanded her activities even as authorities clamped down on users of Chinese-made mobile phones in border regions ahead of the Ninth Party Congress. While other remittance brokers lay low during the cleanup campaign, &#8220;A&#8221; charged premium fees to connect North Korean defectors with their families through video calls, drawing more clients to her services.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">As her remittance business grew, &#8220;A&#8221; began concealing some details from her state security handlers. Officers eventually learned of her hidden activities through another informant, a sign of the double and triple-layered surveillance structure in which even informants monitored one another. State security officers staked out &#8220;A&#8221; for several days before arresting her as soon as she pulled out her Chinese-made mobile phone.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">News of the arrest drew sharp public criticism. People said that &#8220;nobody should trust state security officers,&#8221; that officers &#8220;kindly smile in your face while slapping the back of the head,&#8221; and that they &#8220;specialize in raising people for the slaughter.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Despite knowing that &#8220;A&#8221; had informed on them to state security, many expressed sympathy for the broker. According to the source, acquaintances described &#8220;A&#8221; as someone who occasionally helped people in need. &#8220;People said &#8216;A&#8217; acted as an informant to survive, not because they were a bad person,&#8221; the source said. &#8220;The incident has caused criticism of state security officers to grow.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Speculation has emerged that the arrest was intended to boost state security&#8217;s arrest numbers ahead of the Ninth Party Congress. People say that because crackdown results are directly tied to the assessed loyalty of state security officers and reflected in internal evaluations, officers have begun arresting even their own informants.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">&#8220;People who know of this behavior are unlikely to voluntarily cooperate with state security officers in the future,&#8221; the source said. &#8220;Distrust of state security has grown as a result of the incident, when faith in the criminal justice system was already low enough.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">The fate of &#8220;A&#8221; remains unclear. Some people believe she will eventually be released, while others say she is unlikely to go free anytime soon, even if bribes are paid.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/20260219-5\/\">Read in Korean<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n<!-- Daily NK \u2014 A Note to Readers \u2014 End of Article Pattern -->\n<div style=\"background:#1a1a1a;border-top:3px solid #cc0000;padding:0;margin-top:32px;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;\">\n  <div style=\"padding:20px 24px 24px;\">\n\n    <!-- Header row -->\n    <div style=\"display:flex;align-items:center;gap:12px;margin-bottom:14px;\">\n      <span style=\"background:#cc0000;color:#fff;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:9px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.15em;text-transform:uppercase;padding:3px 8px;flex-shrink:0;\">A Note to Readers<\/span>\n      <div style=\"flex:1;height:1px;background:#333;\"><\/div>\n    <\/div>\n\n    <!-- Intro line -->\n    <p style=\"font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:15px;color:#fff;font-weight:normal;line-height:1.4;margin:0 0 12px;\">Reporting from inside North Korea<\/p>\n\n    <!-- Body -->\n    <p style=\"font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:13px;color:#bbb;line-height:1.75;margin:0 0 16px;\">\n      Daily NK operates networks of sources inside North Korea who document events in real-time and transmit information through secure channels. Unlike reporting based on state media, satellite imagery, or defector accounts from years past, our journalism comes directly from people currently living under the regime. We verify reports through multiple independent sources and cross-reference details before publication.\n    <\/p>\n\n    <p style=\"font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:13px;color:#bbb;line-height:1.75;margin:0 0 16px;\">\n      Our sources remain anonymous because contact with foreign media is treated as a capital offense in North Korea &mdash; discovery means imprisonment or execution. This network-based approach allows Daily NK to report on developments other outlets cannot access: market trends, policy implementation, public sentiment, and daily realities that never appear in official narratives.\n    <\/p>\n\n    <p style=\"font-family:Georgia,serif;font-size:13px;color:#bbb;line-height:1.75;margin:0 0 20px;\">\n      Maintaining these secure communication channels and protecting source identities requires specialized protocols and constant vigilance. Daily NK serves as a bridge between North Koreans and the outside world, documenting what&#8217;s happening inside one of the world&#8217;s most closed societies.\n    <\/p>\n\n    <!-- CTA row -->\n    <div style=\"border-top:1px solid #333;padding-top:16px;display:flex;align-items:center;gap:16px;flex-wrap:wrap;\">\n      <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/how-we-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"\n         style=\"background:#cc0000;color:#fff;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.08em;text-transform:uppercase;padding:9px 16px;text-decoration:none;flex-shrink:0;\">How We Report<\/a>\n      <a href=\"https:\/\/mailchi.mp\/830d12539ead\/dnkweeklybriefing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"\n         style=\"background:transparent;color:#cc0000;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11px;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:.08em;text-transform:uppercase;padding:9px 0;text-decoration:none;border-bottom:1px solid #cc0000;flex-shrink:0;\">Subscribe to Our Weekly Briefing<\/a>\n    <\/div>\n\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- End Daily NK \u2014 A Note to Readers -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A remittance broker in Hyesan, Ryanggang province, who had worked as a state security informant for years, was arrested by state security officers in mid-January. The arrest has fueled public criticism that officers are turning on their own informants to pad performance numbers ahead of the Ninth Party Congress. &#8220;One Hyesan resident who worked as [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":42799,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wikipediapreview_detectlinks":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[67,649,1360],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-323007","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-china-north-korea-border","category-society"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.7 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant - North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A remittance broker in Hyesan, Ryanggang province, who had worked as a state security informant for years, was arrested by state security officers in mid-January. The arrest has fueled public criticism that officers are turning on their own informants to pad performance numbers ahead of the Ninth Party Congress. &#8220;One Hyesan resident who worked as [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-25T02:55:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-07T04:37:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/11\/DSC01790-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Lee Chae Eun\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Lee Chae Eun\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Lee Chae Eun\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6c9f40b0a89c4a5354607f43756dbbe0\"},\"headline\":\"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-25T02:55:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-07T04:37:10+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":604,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/11\\\/DSC01790-1.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\",\"China-North Korea Border\",\"Society\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/\",\"name\":\"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant - North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/11\\\/DSC01790-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-25T02:55:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-07T04:37:10+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/11\\\/DSC01790-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2019\\\/11\\\/DSC01790-1.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":800,\"caption\":\"FILE PHOTO: A border patrol checkpoint in Pungso county, Ryanggang province, can be seen in this photo, which was taken in February 2019. (Daily NK)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/\",\"name\":\"North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Daily NK English\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/top_logo@1x.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/top_logo@1x.png\",\"width\":272,\"height\":90,\"caption\":\"Daily NK English\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"description\":\"An independent online news organization based in Seoul, South Korea, reporting on internal North Korean affairs through a network of in-country sources and defector journalists. Part of the Unification Media Group (UMG) consortium.\",\"email\":\"dailynkenglish@uni-media.net\",\"telephone\":\"82-2-732-6998\",\"legalName\":\"DailyNK\",\"foundingDate\":\"2004-12-01\",\"numberOfEmployees\":{\"@type\":\"QuantitativeValue\",\"minValue\":\"1\",\"maxValue\":\"10\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6c9f40b0a89c4a5354607f43756dbbe0\",\"name\":\"Lee Chae Eun\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/9f4cf0f24b376077a2fcdab2e85c3584-150x150.webp\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/9f4cf0f24b376077a2fcdab2e85c3584-150x150.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/2\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/9f4cf0f24b376077a2fcdab2e85c3584-150x150.webp\",\"caption\":\"Lee Chae Eun\"},\"description\":\"Lee Chae Eun covers trade and market trends, as well as the North Korean government's surveillance and control of its citizens. She also closely follows the situation of North Korean defectors living in China. Further details about her identity cannot be made public for security reasons. Questions about her articles can be directed to dailynkenglish(at)uni-media.net.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.dailynk.com\\\/english\\\/author\\\/lee-chea-un\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant - North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant","og_description":"A remittance broker in Hyesan, Ryanggang province, who had worked as a state security informant for years, was arrested by state security officers in mid-January. The arrest has fueled public criticism that officers are turning on their own informants to pad performance numbers ahead of the Ninth Party Congress. &#8220;One Hyesan resident who worked as [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/","og_site_name":"North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026","article_published_time":"2026-02-25T02:55:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-07T04:37:10+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":800,"url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/11\/DSC01790-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Lee Chae Eun","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Lee Chae Eun","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/"},"author":{"name":"Lee Chae Eun","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#\/schema\/person\/6c9f40b0a89c4a5354607f43756dbbe0"},"headline":"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant","datePublished":"2026-02-25T02:55:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-07T04:37:10+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/"},"wordCount":604,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/11\/DSC01790-1.jpg","articleSection":["News","China-North Korea Border","Society"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/","url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/","name":"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant - North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/11\/DSC01790-1.jpg","datePublished":"2026-02-25T02:55:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-07T04:37:10+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/11\/DSC01790-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/11\/DSC01790-1.jpg","width":1200,"height":800,"caption":"FILE PHOTO: A border patrol checkpoint in Pungso county, Ryanggang province, can be seen in this photo, which was taken in February 2019. (Daily NK)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/north-korean-spy-agency-turns-on-its-own-informant\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"North Korean spy agency turns on its own informant"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/","name":"North Korea News \u2014 Daily NK | Latest DPRK Updates 2026","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#organization","name":"Daily NK English","url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/top_logo@1x.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/04\/top_logo@1x.png","width":272,"height":90,"caption":"Daily NK English"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"description":"An independent online news organization based in Seoul, South Korea, reporting on internal North Korean affairs through a network of in-country sources and defector journalists. Part of the Unification Media Group (UMG) consortium.","email":"dailynkenglish@uni-media.net","telephone":"82-2-732-6998","legalName":"DailyNK","foundingDate":"2004-12-01","numberOfEmployees":{"@type":"QuantitativeValue","minValue":"1","maxValue":"10"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/#\/schema\/person\/6c9f40b0a89c4a5354607f43756dbbe0","name":"Lee Chae Eun","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/9f4cf0f24b376077a2fcdab2e85c3584-150x150.webp","url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/9f4cf0f24b376077a2fcdab2e85c3584-150x150.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/02\/9f4cf0f24b376077a2fcdab2e85c3584-150x150.webp","caption":"Lee Chae Eun"},"description":"Lee Chae Eun covers trade and market trends, as well as the North Korean government's surveillance and control of its citizens. She also closely follows the situation of North Korean defectors living in China. Further details about her identity cannot be made public for security reasons. Questions about her articles can be directed to dailynkenglish(at)uni-media.net.","url":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/author\/lee-chea-un\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323007","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/132"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=323007"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323007\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":323010,"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/323007\/revisions\/323010"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=323007"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=323007"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dailynk.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=323007"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}