Editorial Note: Bank Fraud Threatens Everyday Life—Responsibility Must Be Shared

Recently, an acquaintance of mine narrowly avoided falling victim to a romance scam. After meeting someone through social media, she received affectionate morning calls every day. Then, one day, the person requested a copy of her ID and asked her to transfer several tens of millions of won. The excuse was that research funds were delayed. In hindsight, it was obviously a scam, but at the time, it sounded plausible.
However, everyone has a weak spot. Bank fraud has now evolved into a 'tailored courtship' that targets individuals’ emotions and circumstances. The scammer even pleaded their case through another social media account and continued their advances, demonstrating just how persistent these tactics can be.
Bank fraud and scams threaten everyone’s daily life. From January to November last year, there were 21,588 cases of voice phishing (vishing). The total amount lost reached 1.133 trillion won, an increase of about 56% compared to the same period the previous year.
In response, the government introduced special measures to protect victims of vishing. A new system will increase the liability of financial institutions. Under this system, even if an account holder is deceived by a scammer and transfers funds directly, both the remitting and receiving banks will be obligated to compensate the victim.
This system, promoted by the government and the ruling party, is called the 'No-fault Liability System for Payouts.' However, the legislation reveals that the fault of financial institutions will still be considered. If a financial institution has warned the user about potential losses, or if the user acted with intent or gross negligence, the institution may be exempt from liability.
The core of the system promoted by the government and the ruling party is not 'no-fault,' but rather the sharing of responsibility. Instead of blaming victims who are psychologically pressured with limited information, the focus should be on identifying who missed opportunities to prevent the scam and distributing responsibility fairly.
It is also important to note why the government and the ruling party decided to strengthen the responsibility of financial institutions. The current voluntary compensation system is virtually ineffective. In the first half of last year, there were only 45 voluntary compensation cases for non-face-to-face financial accidents among domestic financial institutions, with total compensation under 200 million won. Compensation is often determined arbitrarily by each institution, which is another problem.
If the compensation burden increases, it could ultimately be passed on to customers, so it is necessary to be cautious about setting high compensation limits. The concerns raised by banks about 'moral hazard' and 'unclear exemption criteria' must also be addressed with precise solutions. However, these are issues to be improved, not reasons to reject the system.
stand@fnnews.com Reporter