Ministry of SMEs Affiliates and Private Platforms Join Forces to Prevent Illegal Brokers

Joint Business Agreement Signed with Kmong and Soongo
Establishing Public-Private Joint Monitoring and Emergency Communication System
Enhancing Protection for Policy Beneficiaries

On April 9, six affiliated organizations under the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that they will sign a "Business Agreement to Eradicate Unfair Third-Party Interference in Government Support Projects" jointly with two private platform companies at Mapo Dream Square in Seoul.

This agreement is intended to prevent damages to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and small business owners caused by illegal brokers, who have been rampant in the field of government support projects, and to ensure fairness in the support programs.

Small Enterprise and Market Service

The agreement brings together a total of eight organizations, including six public institutions participating in the pan-government "Task Force for Solving the Problem of Unfair Third-Party Interference": the Small Enterprise and Market Service, the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency, the Korea Technology Finance Corporation, the Korea Federation of Credit Guarantee Foundations, the Korea Technology and Information Promotion Agency for SMEs, and the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development, as well as two private platform companies offering expert matching services: Kmong and Brave Mobile (Soongo).

Under the agreement, public institutions will establish an emergency communication system to mutually share key information, such as the latest trends and behavioral patterns of illegal brokers and related cautionary keywords. Based on this information, the private platform companies plan to conduct intensive monitoring within their platforms for exaggerated advertisements, unauthorized use of public institution names, and circumvention of qualification requirements.

In addition, a "Notice on Unfair Interference" will be continuously displayed within the platforms to raise users' awareness, and practical protective measures will be implemented to ensure platform users are not exposed to unfair interference. The participating organizations also plan to jointly conduct an eradication campaign against unfair interference.

The government and public institutions are operating reporting centers and reward systems within each organization to prevent unfair third-party interference, eradicate illegal acts, and provide relief for damages suffered by SMEs and small business owners.

An official from one of the participating organizations stated, "Through close collaboration between the public and private sectors, we will combine information and capabilities to effectively block unfair interference and further strengthen the support environment so that government assistance can be fully delivered to SMEs, venture companies, and small business owners who truly need it."

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