A North Korean man believed to have recently defected to South Korea has spoken to hundreds of internet users about prison camps, nuclear weapons, propaganda and daily life in the reclusive country.
He answered questions in an "Ask Me Anything" interview hosted by the website Reddit with the help of an interpreter.
Writing under the pseudonym of Sang-hyun, the man, who is in his early 20s, also spoke of a cultural shift emerging between people of his generation and older North Koreans.
"Before the famine [in the late 1990s], people believed and relied on the state, but then life was very difficult, so people learned that they could only rely on themselves. A lot of the people who only believed in the state died," he wrote.
"These days, on the inside people are the same as capitalists."
In the interview, which was facilitated by US-run activist group Liberty in North Korea (LiNK) with the help of Movements.org, Sang-hyun claimed that the perception of North Korea's totalitarian leadership was also changing among citizens.
When asked whether people in his home country still believed in "god-like" worship of state leaders, he replied:
"In the old days, people believed that, and older people still largely believe that. But the younger generation does not believe that. It's like how I've noticed that the younger generation in the outside world have different beliefs or culture to the older generation, too."
Dr Leonid Petrov, Korean Studies expert at Australian National University, said the interview - which he believes is genuine - suggests any perceived changes that may have occurred since the accession of leader Kim Jong-Un are largely superficial.
"What is interesting is [Sang-hyun] observed the change of leadership after the death of Kim Jong-Il, the late leader of North Korea, in late 2011," he said.
"The defector confirms it looks like Kim Jong-Un is trying to fake the change rather than to implement any substantial change."
"What [the regime] is trying to do is simply survive, muddle through and buy some time... to postpone any major uprising or discontent, by giving some new forms of entertainment, new concerts and new types of recreation facilities to the people who live in Pyongyang."
Sang-hyun said in the interview North Koreans are increasingly becoming more attuned to the outside world with the help of illegal media.
"Personally, I watched South Korean movies illegally and learned a lot from that," he wrote.
Dr Petrov says Sang-hyun's experience and testimony presents a strong case for encouraging more grassroots interaction with North Koreans -- such as opportunities for tourism and business.
"The defector suggests that tourism is a positive thing for North Korean people because it engages them and gives them more exposure to foreign visitors and foreign cultures and foreign languages."
"[Change] is not coming from the top; it's rather defying the oppression and the isolation from outside and this is where we should start dealing with North Korea."
"Rather than cornering North Korea, rather than pushing it further into isolation -- if we expect North Korea to change and we want to help North Koreans live better lives we have to engage them," he said.
An estimated 24,000 people have fled North Korea in the 60 years since the Korean War Armistice was signed.
What North Korean defector 'Sang-hyun' said:
ABOUT PRISON CAMPS
"People just think that you die if you go in there. That's the most scary thing in North Korea. That's why people can't speak up, because they're worried about being sent there. My father always told me from a young age to be careful what you say, because if you make a mistake then you get sent to that kind of place."
"I also experienced a couple of times where families disappeared from my community. If people move away in a normal way then you say goodbye and you see them leaving in the day time, but these people just disappeared over night. I later found out it was because the father had criticised Kim Jong-il to one of his friends, and that had been reported, so the whole family were taken away."
ABOUT NUCLEAR WEAPONS
"The regime tells the people that all the other socialist countries collapsed, but we are the only one left which is standing up to the USA. And nuclear weapons are what enables us to do that. That's what the regime says..."
"Personally when I was in North Korea I didn't really think of the nuclear weapons were a threat to the outside world, and it felt like there was some progress in the country, so I felt good about it. Now it feels different though."
ABOUT LIFE OUTSIDE NORTH KOREA
"I was surprised by IT and the internet the most."
ABOUT PROPAGANDA SPEAKERS
"There aren't speakers that you can't turn off in the house, but there are propaganda speakers outside that you can't turn off."
ABOUT FOOD AND FAMINE
"Things are a bit better than during the Arduous March [famine in the late 1990s]. But the level is still not sufficient. The biggest change is in people's minds."