Pray that you don't have to use a North Korean smartphone!
India, June 7 -- In a growing world of smarter phones, where each one of us has a digital footprint, privacy is a luxury. Our phones probably know us better than even our spouses and families. So imagine something that we control, in turn controlling how we use it. Feels straight out of a Black Mirror episode, doesn't it?
North Korea's population lives the reality, if a viral video by BBC News is to be believed. A phone was smuggled out of the country ruled by Kim Jong Un, dubbed the 'Supreme Leader', and what the world found was truly shocking.
For starters, the phone doesn't have access to the internet, as Kim doesn't want his people to be abreast of what's happening around the world. Suppression of information has forever been a staple of his regime. Next, the phone takes a screenshot automatically every 15 minutes or so and stores it in a folder which the phone's owner cannot access. Only the government officials can, to see what the user has been up to.
And here, we all get a mini heart attack if someone as much as mentions checking our browser histories!
All this and more has been discussed by Sonal Kalra, Chief Managing Editor, Lifestyle and Entertainment, in her show MiPhi presents The Right Angle with Sonal Kalra this week.
Do you know that North Korea's smartphones (well, they aren't really smart) also autocorrect (again, not correcting it, really) certain terms and phrases? So if you type in 'South Korea' in a North Korean smartphone, it automatically becomes 'puppet state'. North and South Korea have not exactly been the best of friends in real life, which explains it. Watch the episode to know more!
A new episode of MiPhi presents The Right Angle with Sonal Kalra drops every Friday at 7pm across Hindustan Times, Hindustan and Mint's YouTube channels. Don't miss it!...
To read the full article or to get the complete feed from this publication, please
Contact Us.