Confirmed Cases Numbering Dozens... Controversy Over Excessive Use of Corruption Investigation Office Communication Data Queries Expands

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[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The High-ranking Officials' Crime Investigation Unit (Hogeumgongjikja Beomjoe Susacheo, or Gongsucheo) has sparked ongoing controversy after it was revealed that it massively accessed and collected communication data containing personal information of journalists from media outlets under the pretext of investigating 'reporter bribery' and other cases.

According to the legal community on the 17th, the number of journalists targeted by Gongsucheo's data inquiries is reportedly dozens from at least 10 different media organizations. It is also reported that some of the journalists whose personal information was confirmed by Gongsucheo from telecommunications companies are not directly related to the investigations.

Some voices have pointed out that the laws allowing investigative agencies to obtain communication data from telecom companies without a warrant are problematic. Under current law, the data that investigative agencies such as the prosecution, police, and Gongsucheo can obtain from telecom companies are broadly categorized into communication fact confirmation data and communication data.

Communication fact confirmation data contains information about when, where, and with whom a subscriber communicated. This corresponds to what is commonly referred to as 'investigative agencies checking call logs.' To view this data, investigative agencies must obtain a warrant from the court and present it to the telecom company.

On the other hand, communication data is problematic. Communication data includes the user's name, resident registration number, address, phone number, ID, and so forth, and this data can be requested by investigative agencies from telecom companies without a warrant. While the provision of communication fact confirmation data is strictly regulated under the Protection of Communications Secrets Act, communication data governed by the Telecommunications Business Act is relatively easy to provide under the law.

Criticism regarding the 'blind' provision of communication data for investigative purposes without notifying the individuals involved has been raised by civic groups for over a decade. There have also been several lawsuits against telecom companies.

In 2016, three reporters including Jung from a weekly magazine, upon learning that their communication data had been provided to investigative agencies, filed a lawsuit demanding that the three major telecom companies disclose the 'communication data provision request forms' submitted by the investigative agencies. However, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the telecom companies, stating that "it is difficult to consider the investigative agencies' communication data provision request forms as containing personal information under the Information and Communications Network Act."

In the same year, the Lawyers for a Democratic Society and others filed a constitutional complaint arguing that "the unauthorized collection of communication data by intelligence and investigative agencies is unconstitutional, and the relevant provisions of the Telecommunications Business Act are also unconstitutional." The Constitutional Court has yet to reach a conclusion after more than five years.

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