Opening the app with mobile devices on the North Korean carrier Koryolink has resulted in a notification in English saying: "Warning! You can’t connect to this website because it’s in blacklist site," the AP reported.

A similar notice in Korean says the site contains harmful content, though that is not mentioned in the English version.

Tech support staff at Koryolink said they were not aware of any changes in policy regarding Instagram. There has been no notice from the government or from the mobile phone service to its customers that Instagram has been blacklisted.

It was still possible to use the app, despite the warnings, on some mobile devices.

Adapted from the Associated Press

Photo: Associated Press