Police Allow Issuance of 'Detective' Title Certificates... Will the Introduction of Certified Detectives Accelerate?

Private Detective/Photo by Getty Images Bank

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-ju] The police have decided to allow the use of the term 'tamjeong' (detective) for private certificates related to detective work, which had previously been issued under names such as private investigator.

The National Police Agency announced on the 4th that private certificate issuing organizations have been permitted since the end of last year to issue certificates containing the term tamjeong. The use of the tamjeong term became possible following the enforcement of the revised Credit Information Act in August last year. In line with this, the police explained that the term tamjeong can now be used in related private certificates.

Currently, tamjeong can legally perform three main tasks: ▲tracking missing minors ▲tracking stolen or lost items ▲fact-finding based on publicly available information or with the consent of the other party. However, illegal activities by unauthorized private investigation agencies and errand centers still persist in reality.

To prevent such illegal activities, discussions on introducing certified tamjeong are gaining momentum. In November last year, Lee Myeong-su, a member of the People Power Party, took the lead in proposing the "Act on the Management of the Detective Business," while police veterans Yoon Jae-ok and Seo Beom-su of the People Power Party, along with Lim Ho-seon of the Democratic Party, co-hosted a National Assembly seminar to discuss the direction and strategy for enacting detective business legislation.

The police plan to strictly respond to related illegal activities alongside efforts to legislate the detective business. After the law revision, from September to October last year, the police conducted inspections over three weeks targeting 22 private certificate issuing organizations related to tamjeong and issued correction orders to five organizations due to concerns such as ▲failure to collect consent forms for personal information collection ▲inadequate exam management ▲unclear display of private certificate status in advertisements. The police also plan to crack down this year on illegal activities by companies using the tamjeong name or unauthorized private investigation agencies and errand centers.

A police official said, "Following the deletion of the legal provision banning the use of the tamjeong term, it has been allowed to be used in private certificates as well," adding, "This is part of the overall work toward institutionalizing and legislating the detective business."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.