Three jailed in South Korea over gambling sites built with North Korean hackers

The Seoul Central District Court gave one defendant four years in prison on November 12. Two others received three years each. The first man was also disqualified from certain positions for four years; one of the others received a three-year disqualification. SBS reported that the convictions included violations of the National Security Act and illegal gambling offences.

The three were tried as accomplices of a man identified only as Kim. His five-year sentence, with a five-year disqualification, became final in September. According to the court coverage, Kim worked with North Korean developers in China between 2022 and 2024 to produce 16 gambling sites across 71 domains, then sold the software to operators in South Korea.

Sales through Kim’s network brought in roughly 23.5 billion won, or $17.6 million at the conversion used by Yonhap. More than 7 billion won, about 30% of that amount, went to the North Korean developers. The larger figure describes the sales network’s receipts. Neither report gives a total for wagers placed by players on the sites.

SBS identified the defendant who received four years as Kim’s younger brother. He said he did not know the developers he dealt with were North Korean. The court rejected that defence, citing North Korean language used in a Telegram chat room he joined. Investigators said the three defendants had helped distribute the sites domestically at Kim’s request.

Court reporting linked the developers to Bureau 313 under North Korea’s Ministry of Munitions Industry and Bureau 5 of its Reconnaissance General Bureau. In explaining the sentences, the judges cited national security risks and the social harm caused by online gambling. The reports do not establish how much of the money paid to the developers, if any, subsequently reached the North Korean government.

This case concerns the supply of gambling platforms: Kim commissioned the sites, local accomplices helped distribute them, and the developers received a share of the sales proceeds. It is separate from South Korea’s previously reported 153-site network. Here, the court traced 16 sites spread over 71 domains.