Ha Tae-kyung "Additional Hacking Damage Confirmed... Park Ji-won, Director of National Intelligence Service, Must Be Held Accountable"

NSC Immediate Convening and Raising Cyberattack Alert to Severe Level
Ha Tae-kyung "US Sources Warn KAI Hacking Damage Could Escalate into Allied Diplomatic Issue"

Ha Tae-kyung, a member of the People Power Party, holds a press conference on the hacking incident of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) at the National Assembly Communication Office on the 1st. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Rep. Ha Tae-kyung of the People Power Party disclosed signs of hacking damage to other major institutions in connection with the hacking of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) following the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute. Holding those responsible accountable for being helpless against a series of hacking attacks suspected to be the work of North Korea, Rep. Ha demanded the resignation of Park Ji-won, the Director of the National Intelligence Service, and an upgrade of the cyberattack alert to a severe level.

On the 1st, Rep. Ha held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office and revealed that additional hacking damage had been confirmed beyond the Atomic Energy Research Institute and KAI. He stated, "When asked whether there had been hacking incidents at other defense contractors besides Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering and KAI recently, the relevant agencies responded, ‘It is difficult to determine whether the reported incidents involve personal hacking of employees or hacking of the organization's internal network, and due to concerns about exposing company information, it is difficult to provide a definitive answer,’ effectively acknowledging the possibility of additional damage."

The National Intelligence Service reportedly gave a similar response. Rep. Ha introduced, "When asked on the 10th of last month to verify whether a specific incident was a North Korean hacking case, the NIS replied, ‘It is not that case, but we detected similar cases and took security measures.’" Regarding this, Rep. Ha explained, "Considering that the incidents involving the Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, and KAI are either currently under investigation or occurred after the response, it means there have been other hacking incidents by North Korea."

Additionally, Rep. Ha introduced, "A U.S. source familiar with internal affairs warned, ‘KAI shares core military technologies with prominent overseas defense contractors, and their work networks are interconnected,’ adding, ‘If the damage escalates, it is highly likely to escalate into a diplomatic issue among allied countries.’"

The previous day, Rep. Ha disclosed that KAI was hacked on the 16th of last month based on reports from the Defense Acquisition Program Administration and other related agencies on the 29th of last month, stating, "The hacking incident at KAI is similar to the case at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, which was reportedly hacked on the 14th of last month by ‘kimsuky,’ a hacker group under North Korea’s Reconnaissance General Bureau."

Rep. Ha said, "Summarizing the facts revealed so far, North Korean hacker groups are focusing on core technologies such as nuclear-powered submarines (nuclear subs) that can directly threaten the United States, and U.S. defense contractors connected to KAI’s network are also exposed to danger," adding, "Before this escalates into a diplomatic issue among allied countries, a joint Korea-U.S. emergency cyber security meeting should be held promptly to assess the situation and discuss countermeasures."

Regarding the series of hacking attacks, Rep. Ha demanded ▲the Blue House immediately convene the National Security Council (NSC) and issue a cyberattack alert at the severe level equivalent to a national emergency, switching to an all-government total response system ▲hold an emergency Korea-U.S. cyber security meeting ▲hold Park Ji-won, Director of the National Intelligence Service, accountable and force his resignation ▲send strong protests and warnings to North Korea.

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