KIPO Establishes Dedicated 'Technology Investigation' Unit to Prevent Overseas Leakage and Infringement of Innovative Technologies

On the 27th, Kim Yong-rae, Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (first from the left), is reviewing counterfeit products that were seized and identified so far with the members of the Technology Police after the launch ceremony of the Technology Police. Provided by the Korean Intellectual Property Office

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] “We will establish a dedicated technical investigation unit to strengthen the surveillance and crackdown network to prevent domestic innovative technologies from being leaked or infringed overseas.” On the 27th, Kim Yong-rae, Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), expressed his commitment to KIPO’s role as a guardian of technology.

On the 27th, KIPO reorganized the Industrial Property Investigation Division into ▲Technology Police Division (dedicated technical investigation unit) ▲Trademark Police Division (dedicated trademark investigation unit) ▲Unfair Competition Investigation Team (administrative investigation) starting from that day.

Following the reorganization, the personnel of the Industrial Property Investigation Division (investigators and inspectors) increased from 47 to 58, with 22 assigned to the Technology Police Division, 29 to the Trademark Police Division, and 7 to the Unfair Competition Investigation Team.

In particular, the newly established Technology Police Division is staffed with examination and trial personnel who possess expertise in both technology and legal fields, and will be responsible for preventing the overseas leakage and infringement of the nation’s key technologies.

KIPO plans to continuously discuss cooperation measures for technology protection with major related organizations such as the Daejeon District Court, Daejeon District Prosecutors’ Office, Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency, and the National Intelligence Service.

The Korean Intellectual Property Office will reorganize the Industrial Property Investigation Division, including the establishment of the Technology Police Division as of the 27th. Organizational chart of the reorganized Industrial Property Investigation Division. Provided by the Korean Intellectual Property Office.

Additionally, to effectively eradicate technology leakage and infringement, KIPO plans to expand the scope of duties of the Technology Police to cover overall industrial technology and promote dispatching prosecutors to strengthen investigative capabilities such as search and seizure.

Commissioner Kim Yong-rae stated, “With the launch of the dedicated technical investigation unit, KIPO intends to focus investigative efforts on cases of overseas technology leakage. Based on this, we will strive to establish a fair market order where companies’ hard-earned innovative technologies are not infringed upon in the market.”

Meanwhile, since 2010, KIPO has received and processed over 53,000 reports of counterfeit goods, resulting in the criminal indictment of over 4,000 individuals and the seizure of more than 12 million counterfeit items.

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