North Korea will confiscate anything that resembles a Christian cross coming in from China, according to local sources.
A peddler based in Pyongyang told RFA's Korean services that customs officials in the secluded nation have started watching for products with cross-like markings.
The source, who wished to remain anonymous, said they have always had to check for any Korean characters on the labels of products they brought in from China.
"Now we have to check again to see that there isn't anything that looks like a cross," the source added.
"Some designs on women's clothing can look a lot like a cross, depending on who is looking at it. Cross designs also appear on women's hairpins and hair bands and on men's neckties."
"These products are more likely to be confiscated during customs checks."
North Korea has remained under the watch of human rights watchdogs as its leadership is hostile to all organized religions. Defectors have labelled the nation under the rule of Kim Jong-un as the "most dangerous place to be a Christian."
In its 2016 annual report, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedoms estimated that tens of thousands of Christians in North Korea are currently in prison camps facing hard labour or execution.
According to analysts, Christianity is routinely associated with America and Western ideology, and is therefore considered especially threatening to its communist regime.
Another source from North Hamgyong province said that sometimes imports shipped from China looking like the letter "X". were confiscate.
"If young women carry key chains or wear earrings that have designs resembling a cross, these are also taken away."
"Students in math classes must also be careful now when drawing "plus signs" to make the vertical and horizontal lines of equal length," he added. "You can't have the vertical line go longer."