TOKYO — The sour state of relations on the Korean Peninsula has led to equally sour relations on the Internet, with North and South Korea now engaged in a micro-battle over micro-blogging.
It started Aug. 12, when North Korea opened a Twitter account, using the popular site to spread propaganda. The South last week responded by trying to block its citizens from accessing the content, threatening offenders with jail. The North, in turn, engineered ways to bypass some of the censorship.
As of Friday, South Korean Internet users who sought out the North’s Twitter page instead received a warning from the Korea Communications Standards Commission saying that the site had been banned because of “illegal content.”
On Friday, in another twist, North Korea used a link on its Twitter account to redirect Internet users to an apparently related Facebook page. The Facebook account, Uriminzokkiri — roughly “our nation” — has prompted South Korea to investigate it; if it is confirmed as a North Korean account, it will be blocked.
Seoul has confirmed that the Twitter account, which now has more than 9,000 followers, is operated by an official arm of the Korean Workers’ Party.
The South Korean government’s response to Pyong yang’s propaganda feed contrasts with U.S. receptiveness to North Korea using Twitter.
