Damage in the First Half Alone Reaches 640 Billion... Party and Government to Prepare Measures Against Phishing Crimes

[Financial News] The Democratic Party of Korea and financial authorities have started preparing effective measures to prevent voice phishing crime damage on the 16th. The damage from voice phishing in the first half of this year exceeded 640 billion won. This is an increase of 98% compared to the previous year, and if this trend continues, it is expected to reach a record high. Therefore, the Democratic Party and financial authorities discussed the need for legislation to establish a preemptive prevention system and recover crime proceeds. They also plan to examine the responsibilities of the financial sector.
Kim Yong-min, a Democratic Party lawmaker who hosted the discussion at the National Assembly, pointed out, "Organized financial fraud, including voice phishing, is a serious crime that severely infringes on citizens' property and undermines trust across society." He emphasized that they will eradicate voice phishing with supplementary legislation as well as the comprehensive measures announced by the government last August. In particular, Kim proposed future legislative tasks such as supplementing investigation and victim protection, refund systems, and rational improvement of trial jurisdiction.
Park Ju-min, a Democratic Party lawmaker, said, "We are also considering and discussing ways to recover the damage from voice phishing that has recently been transferred overseas," adding, "If such methods are effectively established, it will greatly help in the substantial recovery of damages."
There was also an opinion that the responsibility of the financial sector should be strengthened. Kim Moon-soo, a Democratic Party lawmaker, pointed out, "Financial institutions can also be seen as joint responsible parties," adding, "Currently, they do not compensate for damages and leave it entirely to the victims." He further pointed out, "There should be some joint responsibility issues with the financial sector."
The Financial Services Commission agreed with the awareness of the problem by Democratic Party lawmakers. Kim Tae-hoon, director of the Financial Safety Division of the Financial Services Commission, said, "With the recent advancement of technology, crime methods are becoming very diverse, and the scale of consumer damage is rapidly expanding," adding, "It is expected that the damage amount will increase to about 1 trillion won this year." He further stated, "I think the stage where individuals can prevent voice phishing on their own has now passed," adding, "Institutions with various legal systems and expertise should respond systematically."
The Financial Services Commission presented tasks at the level of the authorities. First, they will promote the legislation of financial companies' no-fault liability. No-fault liability of financial companies means that even if a financial company has no fault in the process of a voice phishing crime, they are held responsible for being used as a crime channel and compensate the victim for part or all of the damage. Through a system with a 'punitive nature,' they plan to incentivize financial companies to prepare preemptive voice phishing prevention measures.
They also plan to build a system to prevent voice phishing in advance using artificial intelligence (AI) platforms. The key is to block means and suspicious accounts used in voice phishing faster with AI.
The Financial Services Commission also plans to prevent the use of virtual assets in money laundering from voice phishing crime proceeds. Kim stated, "Regulations that allow for account suspension or temporary measures to prevent withdrawals in case of suspicion are not provided for virtual asset exchanges like banks," adding, "We plan to prepare grounds for such measures for virtual asset exchanges, just like general financial companies, to suspend payments and refund victims."
Together with this, they plan to actively produce various promotional materials and educational content to raise public awareness.
gowell@fnnews.com Kim Hyung-gu Reporter