Patent Office Gathers Experts to Advance as a Specialized Agency for Technology Crime Investigation

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[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Experts are coming together to advance the Patent Office's Technology Police into a specialized institution for technology crime.

The Patent Office announced on the 15th that it will hold a "Policy Forum for Establishing Mid- to Long-Term Development Plans for the Technology Police" on the 16th at the Swiss Grand Hotel in Seoul.

The Technology Police began investigative duties in March 2019 to prevent the overseas leakage of the nation's core technologies and to resolve issues of technology theft and infringement that hinder technological innovation in small and medium-sized venture companies.

This is in response to the intensifying competition among countries to secure core technologies and the active research and development investments aimed at securing advanced technologies, which have led to an annual increase in technology leakage and infringement crimes.

According to the National Intelligence Service's Industrial Confidentiality Protection Center, from 2017 to this year (September), there have been 112 cases of industrial technology leakage overseas, of which 36 were confirmed to involve core national technologies such as semiconductors.

In particular, with the advancement of cutting-edge technologies, the methods of technology leakage and infringement crimes have become more intelligent and sophisticated, making the human and material investigative capabilities of agencies investigating technology leakage and infringement crimes essential for securing key evidence.

This is because if the nation's core technologies are leaked overseas, it can cause enormous national and economic losses.

This aligns with the establishment of the Technology Police and the commencement of their investigative duties.

Since starting investigative duties in 2019, the Technology Police have handled 12.9% of all national technology leakage and infringement cases, thereby establishing a specialized investigative system for technology leakage and infringement.

They have also been externally recognized for their expertise by showing a high agreement rate in prosecution opinions (indictment or non-indictment) in technology crimes, where proving allegations is particularly challenging.

However, the Patent Office explains that a shortage of investigative personnel and institutional deficiencies remain challenges to be addressed.

The forum was organized as a venue for experts to come together to solve these challenges. The forum is divided into three parts, with Professor Kang Myung-soo of the Law School at Pusan National University serving as the overall moderator.

The first part focuses on "Strengthening Investigative Capabilities and Enhancing Expertise of the Technology Police," the second on "Institutional Improvement Measures to Ensure the Effectiveness of Technology Protection Enforcement," and the third on "Efficient Operation Plans for Organization and Personnel," with expert discussions in each field.

Kim Si-hyung, Director of the Industrial Property Protection Cooperation Bureau at the Patent Office, said, "The forum was organized as a place where the Patent Office's Technology Police, aiming to establish themselves as a specialized institution for investigating technology crimes, gather the best practical experts related to technology crimes to discuss the current status and issues they directly experience in the field. The Patent Office will strive to seek practical development plans for the Technology Police through this forum."

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