Ministry of Science and ICT Establishes Future Strategic Technology Policy Bureau... Expands Dedicated Cyber Incident Response Unit

Organizational Restructuring Bill Approved at Cabinet Meeting on the 23rd

Organization Chart After the Revision of the Ministry of Science and ICT's Organization. Image provided by the Ministry of Science and ICT

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced that an organizational restructuring bill, focused on fostering strategic technologies and strengthening cyber incident response capabilities, was approved at the Cabinet meeting on the 23rd and will take effect starting on the 30th.

This reorganization aims to enhance future strategy functions in the research and development (R&D) sector and to completely overhaul the information security system in response to a series of hacking incidents.

The Research and Development Policy Office, which oversees R&D, will significantly strengthen its role in fostering future strategic technologies. The existing Public Convergence Research Policy Bureau will be reorganized into the Future Strategic Technology Policy Bureau, which will be responsible for discovering and nurturing next-generation growth engines such as advanced biotechnology, clean hydrogen, nuclear fusion, and small modular reactors (SMRs). Accordingly, the Public Convergence Technology Policy Division will be converted into the Future Strategic Technology Policy Division, which will set the highest-level direction for strategic technology policy and link it to R&D projects.

The Advanced Biotechnology Division, previously under the Basic Source Research Policy Bureau, will be transferred to the Future Strategic Technology Policy Bureau. In addition, a new Bio-Convergence Innovation Team will be established to handle tasks related to bio-research resources. The Advanced Biotechnology Division will focus on developing new technologies, while the Bio-Convergence Innovation Team will support the entire cycle from bio data generation to utilization.

The function of supporting government-funded research institutes will also be strengthened. The Research Institute Innovation Policy Division will be upgraded from a team to a division and newly established, and will be tasked with reorganizing the financial structure of government-funded research institutes to focus on securing national strategic technologies, in line with the phased abolition of the Project-Based System (PBS). Considering organizational synergy, this division will be placed under the Basic Source Research Policy Bureau.

The cyber security response system will also be significantly reinforced. The Network Policy Office will be renamed the Information Security Network Policy Office and its functions expanded. A new Cyber Incident Investigation Team will be established to handle rapid investigations and responses to cyber incidents, increasing the number of personnel from the current two to five.

The newly established investigation team will oversee the entire response cycle, from analyzing the causes of incidents and responding to incidents, to preventing the spread of damage and establishing recovery and recurrence prevention measures. The existing Cyber Incident Response Division will be reorganized to focus on preventive policies, such as operating information security certification systems like Cloud Security Assurance Program (CSAP) and Information Security Management System (ISMS), as well as managing major information and communications infrastructure.

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