N. Korea uses upgraded backdoor scheme to attack US video-conferencing firm 3CX

North Korea has used its upgraded skills to stage a backdoor attack against the network of US virtual phone service company 3CX last month, Mandiant, Google's cybersecurity unit, said Thursday. 3CX, which provides online voice, video conferencing and messaging services for businesses, saw its network chain had been attacked by information-stealing malware planted by a hacker cluster named UNC4736. It is known to be a Lazarus sub-group dubbed Labyrinth Chollima, while Lazarus is one of the N

April 20, 2023

Asian chip makers must cut soaring emissions: Greenpeace

The energy required to make chips for electronics, used in everything from smartphones to AI hardware and cars, will skyrocket this decade, Greenpeace said on Thursday. This requires major firms to commit to seriously cutting emissions, the activist environmental NGO said. The global semiconductor manufacturing industry is projected to emit 86 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2030 -- more than double Portugal's total emissions in 2021 -- Greenpeace said in a new report. The

April 20, 2023

Opposition slams NIS’ ‘no comment’ stance on US spying allegations

The Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers on Thursday slammed the National Intelligence Service for declining to comment on the leak of classified US documents detailing an internal conversation between top South Korean officials. The party's lawmakers used their majority to convene a plenary session on the Assembly’s intelligence committee unilaterally and accused the NIS of failing to provide an adequate explanation for the alleged US spying on the office of President Yoon Suk Yeol. R

April 20, 2023

Supplying arms to Ukraine depends on Russia: Yoon’s office

Whether South Korea will supply arms to Ukraine depends on Russia's actions from now on, a senior official at the presidential office said Thursday following a warning from Moscow that such a decision “constitutes aggression” against Russia. Earlier in the day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said any arms aid to Kyiv, no matter where it comes from, is a “hostile anti-Russian act,” referring to President Yoon Suk Yeol’s interview with Reute

April 20, 2023

PPP, govt. discuss support for 'jeonse' scam victims, but reject proposal to publicly procure affected homes

The ruling People Power Party and the government discussed a series of measures to support victims of home rental scams Thursday, but rejected a proposal from the main opposition Democratic Party to publicly purchase housing units involved in the scams. The support measures discussed in Thursday's meeting included giving victims the priority right to purchase the affected homes, providing them with low-interest loans and postponing or temporarily suspending auctions of the homes. The two si

April 20, 2023

Yoon vows to work toward fair opportunities for disabled people

President Yoon Suk Yeol vowed Thursday to work harder to create a society where disabled people enjoy the same fair opportunities as non-disabled people. Yoon made the remark in a message marking the 43rd Day of People with Disabilities, saying the aim of his administration's philosophy of freedom is to give all people the opportunity for self-realization. "There can be no exceptions. If for whatever reason, the freedom of one person is not guaranteed, we must join forces to guarantee

April 20, 2023

Lawmakers blast North Korean cyberattacks in letter to Kim Jong-un

South Korea lawmakers on Wednesday condemned North Korea’s cyberattacks outside the North Korean Embassy in the UK. The member-lawmakers on the International Parliamentarians’ Coalition for Asian Human Rights -- Reps. Ha Tae-keung, Yang Jung-suk and Yun Chang-hyun -- issued an open letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, read outside the embassy. “We ask Kim Jong-un to stop the hack attacks against the international community immediately. You are mobilizing all of your resou

April 20, 2023

Yoon honors freedom fighters, vows to protect freedoms

President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday his administration will work to realize the ideals of liberal democracy, at an annual ceremony marking the April 19 Revolution, a movement against election fraud that brought down South Korea’s first president, Syngman Rhee, in 1960. “The spirit of the revolution is written into our Constitution. That we cannot overlook freedoms of any single individual is what we must uphold as we run government. I will personally make sure we internalize tha

April 19, 2023

Yoon vows to root out unfair employment succession

President Yoon Suk Yeol has made a firm commitment to eliminate unfair employment succession practices, condemning them as against the spirit of the Constitution and as depriving future generations of opportunities. The elimination of employment succession at industrial sites is considered one of the key tasks of labor reform for Yoon. The goal is in line with his broader efforts to strengthen transparency in union accounting and enforce strict measures against violent acts. During a livestreame

April 18, 2023

Opposition demands firing of Yoon security adviser over US intel leak

Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers on Monday urged President Yoon Suk Yeol to fire principal deputy national security adviser Kim Tae-hyo over his response to a recent US intelligence leak. In a written request submitted to the presidential office, the party’s lawmakers accused Kim of failing to apply sufficient verification before concluding that the leaked Pentagon documents had been forged. “The Yoon administration, which has consistently kept up its kowtowing diplomacy, passed o

April 17, 2023

Opposition leader apologizes for 'cash envelope' scandal

Main opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung on Monday delivered a public apology for concerns over intensifying allegations that illicit, unreported funds were distributed in envelopes containing cash at the party's convention in 2021. The Democratic Party of Korea chairman said he has asked his predecessor Song Young-gil, a suspected beneficiary of the alleged illicit campaign financing scheme, to return to South Korea. "I'm extending my words of apology for causing concern and le

April 17, 2023

Yoon’s approval rating dips to 6-month low

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s approval rating fell to 33.6 percent last week, a six-month low largely prompted by a skeptical public urging the president to confront the US over its recent leak of secret intelligence reports suggesting Washington may have been spying on Seoul. Yoon’s first deputy national security adviser brushed off the damaging leak that made headlines two weeks ago, saying the US seems to have had “no malicious intent,” without offering any concrete eviden

April 17, 2023

Incheon Airport inks deal to rebuild Israeli passenger jets

Incheon International Airport said Monday it has signed a deal to produce freighters converted from passenger aircraft for the state-run Israel Aerospace Industries, after winning in a competition over China, India and Singapore. By 2079, the airport aims to ramp up its export volume by $12 billion, starting with modifying retired Boeing B777 airplanes as cargo transportation aircraft in 2025. It plans to expand its production capacity to convert eight large passenger planes simultaneously --

April 17, 2023

Parties mourn Sewol tragedy, nine years on

South Korea’s two main parties came together Sunday to remember the sinking of the Sewol ferry on April 16, 2014, which left 304 dead -- many of them high school students on a field trip. “Nine years have passed but the memories of the tragedy are still with us. That day, all of us were praying for everyone’s safe return,” the ruling People Power Party chief spokesperson Rep. Kang Min-kuk said in a statement mourning the victims. “Our deepest condolences to the bere

April 16, 2023

First lady calls for joint work on animal rights

First lady Kim Keon Hee said Saturday she hopes to see South Korea and France working together on strengthening animal rights, a topic Kim has been pushing for wider debate as part of efforts to deliver on President Yoon Suk Yeol’s pledge to ban dog meat consumption. At a meeting with French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, Kim referred to a French animal rights law taking effect next year. The law bans pet stores from selling pets unless they are stray animals. Colonna said respect for

April 16, 2023

Main opposition leader calls for joint Korea-US probe into wiretapping allegations

South Korea's main opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung said Friday that Seoul should consider a joint investigation with Washington over the leakage of US intelligence documents that Seoul believes may have been fabricated. The Yoon Suk Yeol administration's "attempted cover-up" of the controversy translates into a diplomatic humiliation, with which it "would defend neither sovereignty nor the national interest," said Lee, chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea

April 14, 2023

[Herald Interview] Speaker says for thaw to last, Japan must reciprocate

Kim Jin-pyo, the speaker of South Korea’s National Assembly, said the success of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s bid to improve ties with Japan hinges on reciprocation from his counterpart, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Speaking with The Korea Herald and its sister publication, Herald Business, on Wednesday, Kim said that Yoon’s deal with Japan in the summit with Kishida last month reflected “significant resolve” on the part of the South Korean president. “It is a d

April 14, 2023

Family of man slain by North Korea, Japanese support group official meet in Seoul

Kazuhiro Araki, the head of a support group for families of Japanese abducted by North Korea, on Thursday met with Lee Rae-jin, the older brother of the South Korean official who was slain near the inter-Korean sea border in September 2020. Araki, who is visiting Seoul, spoke with Lee and his lawyer Kim Ki-yun for about two hours at People Power Party Rep. Ha Tae-keung’s office to discuss plans for a meeting with Japanese families of the missing. “I think it will be empowering for vi

April 13, 2023

[Local and Beyond] 'Decentralization key to curing metropolitan sickness'

    ANDONG, North Gyeongsang Province -- South Korea has achieved remarkable economic success after the 1950-53 Korean War, but faces grave challenges ahead as the country suffers from rapidly aging population, low birth rate, and unhappiness. North Gyeongsang Province Gov. Lee Cheol-woo, who also heads the Governors Association of Korea, believes that the quality of Koreans' lives is being deteriorated by what he calls "metropolitan sickness.” The phenomenon of metropolitan

April 12, 2023

S. Korea brushes off concerns about US intel leak

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s first deputy national security adviser dismissed the diplomatic fallout from the recent leak of highly classified US intelligence reports suggesting it might have been spying on South Korea, saying Washington, Seoul’s biggest ally, seems to have “no malicious intent.” The remarks made Tuesday to reporters in Washington by Kim Tae-hyo -- the adviser who left Seoul that day to discuss Yoon’s state visit in late April -- underscore the Yoon ad

April 12, 2023