Three IT workers sent home from China as suspected defectors
Three North Korean IT workers sent to China to earn foreign currency were recalled in late October 2026 on suspicion of plotting to defect. They had spent less than a year abroad before their minders ordered them home. The three had grown close after being scolded over poor earnings and shunned by colleagues, and that […]
Three North Korean IT workers were recalled from China in late October 2026 due to suspicions of plotting to defect. They had spent only six months abroad, far less than the expected period to become proficient in their trade. Despite being scolded for poor earnings and shunned by colleagues, the trio became close, which raised the suspicions of their supervisors and security agents.
The workers had grown reliant on each other and avoided mixing with other team members, fueling suspicion. They reportedly paid substantial bribes to secure their overseas postings, a common practice for North Korean IT workers. The National Intelligence Agency, North Korea's secret police, monitored the workers' ideological loyalty, intensifying their concern when the IT specialists grew close.
The workers' failure to meet their monthly foreign currency quotas, set by North Korean authorities, only exacerbated the issue. The source described the three as "lukewarm characters" who "lack skill in carrying out their revolutionary tasks" and therefore deemed them untrustworthy. It remains unclear whether the workers actually discussed defecting, but they were nevertheless sent back to North Korea under suspicion.
Written by urgent.news from Daily NK's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
