Over 3,000 People Have Been Approved for Resident Registration Number Changes

Starting Next Year, Change Applications Will Also Be Possible Online

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The use of the "Resident Registration Number Change System," introduced by the government in 2017 to alleviate the anxiety of citizens who suffered physical and financial damages due to the leakage of resident registration numbers and to prevent secondary damage, is increasing.

On the 21st, the Resident Registration Number Change Committee under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety held a regular meeting and announced that the 3,000th resident registration number change had been approved.

In this third-term committee, to prepare for the recent increase in electronic financial fraud damages, on-site experts from the legal and financial sectors were appointed to further strengthen the review expertise. In particular, considering that damages from resident registration number leakage often occur to women in cases such as domestic violence and sexual violence, women's organizations and the younger generation were appointed to strive for more detailed reviews and prompt victim relief.

Since the committee's launch, 4,403 applications have been received, of which 3,045 were approved. The types of damage were led by voice phishing with 1,980 cases (45%), followed by identity theft with 672 cases (15%), domestic violence with 521 cases (12%), injury/threats with 310 cases (7%), sexual violence with 136 cases (3%), and others with 784 cases (18%).

Furthermore, damages were concentrated more on women (2,906 cases, 66%) than men (1,497 cases, 34%), with major damages including voice phishing at 1,376 cases (47%), domestic violence at 443 cases (15%), identity theft at 315 cases (11%), and dating violence at 255 cases (9%). By age group, there were 195 cases in teenagers, 1,475 in their 20s and 30s, 1,739 in their 40s and 50s, 966 in their 60s and 70s, and 28 cases aged 80 and above. The oldest applicant was 89 years old, and the youngest was 2 months old.

Going forward, the committee plans to significantly shorten the statutory processing period to provide prompt relief for citizens affected by resident registration number leakage and will also implement an online application service in response to the demand for non-face-to-face services.

The processing period will be shortened from 6 months to 90 days, and the extension period from 3 months to 30 days, following the recent passage of the amendment to the Resident Registration Act in the National Assembly. Applications involving urgent matters or additional risk possibilities will be decided within 30 days as currently practiced to support prompt relief.

The online application service is scheduled to be improved by the second half of next year to enhance application convenience, allowing applications not only by direct visit but also online (Government24). For victims of domestic violence and sexual violence, applications can be made without identity exposure in the local community, greatly contributing to privacy protection and prevention of secondary damage.

Kim Jeong-hoon, chairman of the Resident Registration Number Change Committee, said, "It is very important to early alleviate the anxiety of citizens suffering from resident registration number leakage and to support the prevention of secondary damage," adding, "We plan to focus all the committee's capabilities on protecting the 'right to self-determination of personal information,' enabling citizens to decide and manage their own information."

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