Computer users can now download an operating system designed by the secretive state which closely resembles Apple's OS X.

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The latest version of a desktop computer operating system reportedly designed by North Korean programmers has been made available online.

A link to the retail version of Red Star 3.0 was posted to Pastebin - a website known for its use by hackers as a place to dump leaked information.

A server version of the software designed by Pyongyangs state-run IT company Korea Computer Center was made available earlier in 2014, but now the desktop version has been made available.


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The update looks uncannily like Apples well-known Mac OS X system, a change to the previous two iterations which bore a striking resemblance to Microsofts Windows.

Red Star is based on Linux software, a free operating system that is behind many platforms. Googles mobile system, Android, is built on it for example.


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North Koreas variation has clearly had some local alterations, however.

The top left hand corner features a red star similar to the one adorning the North Korean flag, while the system only recognises North Koreas ko-kp computer language.

It reportedly also only recognises IP addresses, meaning conventional domain names like skynews.com will not work on the modified web browser.

Other open-source software like Firefox has apparently been used as the basis for programmes like the internet browser.

One of the reasons for many adaptations may be due to the reasons behind the softwares development.


A study of earlier versions of the software by South Koreas Science and Technology Policy Initiative suggested the operating system was built to control the flow of information within the country.

The countrys technological capability has been under scrutiny recently with the hacking of movie studio Sony Pictures and the fallout over their film The Interview, which mocked North Koreas leader Kim Jong-un.

The anonymous poster to Pastebin suggests users wanting to discuss the software online don't ask about The Interview.. I've heard its a touchy subject there... ;).