Song Kyung-hee, Chairperson of the Personal Information Protection Commission: "Transitioning to a Prevention System for Data Breaches... Strengthening the Foundation of Trust"

[Financial News] "We are considering ways to shift personal information protection policies to proactively prevent data breaches."
Meeting with reporters at Government Complex Seoul on the 20th, Song stated, "Fundamentally, a foundation of trust is necessary for the utilization of personal information. We are exploring how to build and leverage this trust."
Song particularly emphasized the need to transition to a proactive prevention system in light of recent large-scale breaches. As a follow-up to the Measures to Strengthen the Personal Information Safety Management System, PIPC has established an Institutional Reform Task Force to develop policy improvements.
Song explained, "When a breach occurs, it is difficult to track how leaked information is distributed across borders. Transitioning to a prevention system to stop data leaks is a critical task. We will focus on enhancing institutional frameworks and expertise to build a robust system."
She also highlighted the potential for international cooperation. Song noted, "Information is not produced and circulated only domestically, yet it is challenging to monitor cross-border data flows. We are examining the technical and institutional processes for managing and distributing information and considering the establishment of a system for international collaboration."
Regarding recent large-scale personal information breaches involving SK Telecom (SKT), KT Corporation (KT), and Lotte Card, Song remarked, "Such incidents do not occur due to a momentary mistake, but rather as a result of accumulated vulnerabilities. We must use this opportunity to thoroughly identify and address the issues."
She added, "Other companies should not assume they are safe simply because they have not experienced an incident. I hope this serves as a wake-up call. Major incidents should be a lesson, prompting a thorough review of personal information management and information security systems."
Song also addressed the issue of staffing shortages within PIPC. She explained, "With the shift to cloud-based environments, personal information is stored on a large scale, and a single breach can quickly escalate. However, the number of investigators has not increased over the past three years, leaving about 30 people to handle the workload. We will strive to improve this situation."

yjjoe@fnnews.com Jo Yoon-joo Reporter