Government: "After investigating home networks... 11 out of 20 target apartments violated regulations"

Ministry of Science and ICT Announces 'Intelligent Home Network Survey' Results
Jointly Released with Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] The government conducted a sample survey on the status of intelligent home network facilities in apartments nationwide and found that more than half of the 20 surveyed complexes, 11 in total, violated installation standards. Although essential equipment was in place, violations such as inadequate locking mechanisms in the equipment installation spaces were detected.

On the 28th, the Ministry of Science and ICT jointly announced the results of the "Intelligent Home Network Status Survey" with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The government surveyed 20 apartment complexes nationwide selected based on region, completion year (within 10 years), and home network device installation products for two weeks starting from the 7th of last month, and then analyzed the data.

Following concerns about the vulnerability of home network security after a hacking incident involving a wall pad in domestic apartments last November, the survey investigated the installation and compliance with technical standards of intelligent home network facilities and the status of security management in these complexes.

There were no complexes missing any of the 20 or so essential facilities such as home network networks and home network devices stipulated in the technical standards. Home network devices like wall pads and home gateways were found to comply with the certification regulations and technical standards of the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

However, 11 complexes violated installation standards, such as inadequate locking devices in the equipment installation spaces. Three complexes did not install closed-circuit televisions (CCTV) in the centralized communication rooms where servers are installed, and one complex installed network equipment in the disaster prevention room instead of the centralized communication room or communication pipe room.

Additionally, all 20 complexes set weak passwords on management office PCs and other devices. Some cases were found where the password was simply '11'.

The government pointed out that overall security management was insufficient, citing cases where Windows 7, an operating system whose technical support ended in early 2020, was still in use (8 complexes) and cases where the latest security updates were not applied (18 complexes).

The government plans to share the results of this status survey with local governments and request measures from business and management entities through the relevant local governments for complexes found to have violated installation standards. Additional investigations on compliance with technical standards will be requested for multi-family housing by region.

The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to expand the "My Server Care Service" and promote the demonstration and dissemination of cloud-based security monitoring services to strengthen the security of intelligent home networks. They are also considering introducing a system to award a "Home Network Security Certification Mark" (tentative name) to multi-family housing that secures a certain level of security.

A government official explained, "For multi-family housing to be safe from hacking and other cyber threats, it is very important not only for managers and residents to comply with home network security rules but also to have a continuous maintenance management system for home network devices and equipment."

He added, "We will do our best to strengthen the security of intelligent home networks by encouraging the discovery and application of various security services in cooperation with security companies, local governments, and multi-family housing."

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