September 27, 2005: South Korea is supplying its officers with cell phones equipped with stronger encryption. This is to prevent North Korean intelligence units from listening in. Only officers and NCOs are allowed to have cell phones while on duty. Encryption for cell phones is not new, and some form of it is quite common in most current models. But the South Korean military encryption is apparently, well, military grade. Most of the cell phone encryption available for civilians is easily cracked, especially by a government agency that can afford the specialized hardware and software tools. Cell phones are often used in training exercises, and even more so in day-to-day operations. Much can be learned, about how the South Korean military operates, by listening in to these conversations.
