KOTRA Launches Personal Information Protection Strategy Meeting... 'Information Filtering Solution' to Be Introduced in 2027

As the need for personal information protection grows across society, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) has strengthened its response system accordingly.

KOTRA announced on April 16 that it has established a new 'Personal Information Protection Strategy Meeting' and held its first session on April 15. This newly established body, which operates directly under the president, aims to address the increasing demand for customer information management, respond to the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) internally and externally, and reflect the strengthened Personal Information Protection Act coming into effect on September 11. The meeting is chaired directly by President Kang Kyung-sung, with more than 20 participants including heads of relevant departments, the newly appointed Chief Privacy Officer (CPO), and external experts. They review the current status of personal information protection and discuss measures to further strengthen it.

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KOTRA, which provides export and investment support services to tens of thousands of companies in Korea and abroad, has continuously worked to enhance its personal information protection capabilities. As a result, it received the highest 'S-grade' rating in the 2025 evaluation of public institutions’ personal information protection levels, and also obtained the international ISO 27701 certification. ISO 27701 is an extension of the existing information security standard ISO/IEC 27001, serving as a standard for establishing and operating a Privacy Information Management System (PIMS).

During this strategy meeting, practical agenda items were discussed in depth, including preparations for the introduction of a professional CPO designation and reporting system, securing budgets to strengthen personal information protection, and reinforcing publicity and education in response to the expansion of punitive surcharges.

In particular, measures to strengthen security and preventive activities in response to the recent spread of AI utilization were also discussed. KOTRA plans to reinforce its data input and output management system through AI security solutions and aims to acquire international certification for AI management systems (ISO 42001) in 2026. Furthermore, in 2027, KOTRA plans to introduce a personal information filtering solution to proactively block information exposure risks from the AI export assistant system it operates, starting from the usage stage.

Kang Kyung-sung, President of KOTRA, stated, "Personal information protection is a key element not only for protecting our customers, but also for enhancing the reliability of all export and investment activities," adding, "We will do our utmost to ensure personal information protection in response to strengthened regulations, expanded AI utilization, and the increasing number of customers."

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