South Korea fingers North in June cyberattack

Malicious computer codes and an IP address point to the North as the source of the attack, according to South Korea.

South Korea has blamed its Northern neighbor for launching a cyberattack last month on the anniversary of the start of the Korean War, Reuters reported on Tuesday.

Officials from South Korea cited a few pieces of evidence to back up their claims.

"An IP address within North Korea's bandwidth was found," Chun Kilsoo, an official at the state-run Korea Internet and Security Agency, told a briefing, Reuters said.

Of course, IP addresses can easily be spoofed. In March, South Korea initially accused China of a cyberattack against banks and TV broadcasters by citing an IP address. But that address turned out to be a virtual one used internally by one of the banks hit by the attack. The South eventually ended up blaming the North for the March attack.

In last month's cyberattack, the malicious computer codes and the technique employed were similar to those used in prior attacks traced back to North Korea, the officials noted.

The attack, which marked the 63rd anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War, targeted multiple government and private Web sites. At the time, a South Korean spokesman said that the attack mimicked past attempts by North Korea to hack into key Web sites. The spokesman pointed the finger at an espionage agency run by the North Korean military.

North Korea has consistenly denied involvement in any cyberattacks launched against the South.

North Korea Says Their iPad Clone Is A Huge Success

A North Korean news agency has released a story today about the growing popularity of the country's iPad clone, called “Achim” (아침), or “Morning”.
KCNA report that the Achim tablet is 7 inches big, 300 grams heavy, and has a battery life of 5 hours. It is said to be gaining traction in schools and with young students.
NK News, an English-language site that monitors the North Korean press, says that while it isn't clear what operating system the Achim uses, it may be a version of its own “Red Star” (Linux variant) OS software, which the country has used in the past.
It's also not entirely clear if the iPad clone is the same as reported about last month by South Korean news source Dong-A Ilbo — which was reportedly called "Samjiyon". That tablet couldn't access the internet, but featured an  encyclopedia, games, eBooks and a map. Curiously, a North Korean defector told the Dong-A Ilbo that almost all the IT terminology on the tablet was in English.
Here's a picture of an "Achim" tablet, fresh off the production line: