Deputy PM vows stronger punitive sanctions over cyber breaches amid audit criticism
Version 2: A second outlet's account adds a financial-sector AI hacking framing and criticism from two further opposition lawmakers, one accusing ministries of hiding behind jurisdiction and another calling for full lifecycle management of hacking investigation data.
In short
Deputy Prime Minister and Science and ICT Minister Bae Kyung-hoon told a National Assembly audit on Oct 6 that the government will strengthen punitive economic sanctions over cyber intrusions and that his ministry will lead the response. Lawmakers said intrusions rose 26% and leaks 45% against 2023 with fivefold more victims, and criticised the absence of a pan-government body and what they described as ministries passing responsibility in a financial-sector AI hacking case. Bae said the related 2026 budget rose 44% to 523.2 billion won and pointed to an Oct 1 law revision allowing on-site investigation on hacking signs without a company report.
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Deputy Prime Minister and Science and ICT Minister Bae Kyung-hoon said the government will strengthen punitive economic sanctions over cyber intrusion incidents, and that his ministry will take the lead in the response, speaking at a National Assembly audit on Oct 6. According to Yonhap, Bae made the remarks at the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee's audit of the ministry, answering People Power Party lawmaker Seo Cheon-ho's question about personal information leaks. Newsis reported that he pledged to strengthen punitive fines sanctions after a series of cyber intrusion incidents. [ 1 , 2 ]
Seo said that compared with 2023, intrusion incidents had risen 26% and information leak incidents 45%, with the number of leak victims up fivefold. He said related budgets had decreased between 2023 and 2026 apart from the budget for building an AI-based intrusion response system, and criticised the ministry, saying its cyber intrusion response budget is the largest among all ministries but that there have been no clear results or measures. He also said response systems are divided by institution and that there is no pan-government response body. [ 2 , 3 ]
Kyunghyang reported a second line of criticism, saying the audit took the government to task over ministry-by-ministry barriers in the response to a financial-sector AI hacking case. People Power Party lawmaker Choi Hyung-doo was quoted as saying that leaving responsibility aside on grounds of jurisdiction in the era of AI hacking would amount to the responsible ministry giving up its status, and that the barriers the government said a year earlier it would remove in a cross-ministry information protection plan remain. [ 3 ]
Bae said cyber intrusions are increasingly prevalent and that South Korea, as an internet power with very high smartphone use, is exposed to more attacks. He said the related budget was raised 44% to 523.2 billion won in 2026 from 3,634 hundred million won. He said the Oct 1 revision of the Information and Communications Network Act allows on-site investigation on hacking signs even without a company report, and that punitive economic sanctions would be strengthened through it, while saying the effectiveness of the revision has not yet appeared. He said the Ministry of Science and ICT will take the lead in managing and responding to intrusion incidents and in standardising manuals, and will work to spread information to related companies and across ministries. [ 2 , 3 ]
Kyunghyang reported that Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Nam-guk also said companies' handling of hacking investigation data was weak, arguing that at a minimum the full lifecycle record of what data was submitted, where it was passed and when it was destroyed should be managed. [ 3 ]
Why it matters
The documents describe a government under parliamentary pressure to answer a rise in cyber intrusions with more budget, new investigative powers and stronger sanctions, while lawmakers say response systems remain split between ministries and that no pan-government body exists. Bae said the effect of the new law has not yet appeared. The documents give no indication of consequences beyond South Korea's domestic response.
Key facts
- Deputy Prime Minister and Science and ICT Minister Bae Kyung-hoon said the government will strengthen punitive economic sanctions over cyber intrusion incidents. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Bae spoke at the National Assembly's Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee audit of his ministry on Oct 6. [ 2 , 3 ]
- People Power Party lawmaker Seo Cheon-ho said intrusion incidents rose 26% and information leak incidents 45% compared with 2023, and that the number of leak victims increased fivefold. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Seo said related budgets fell between 2023 and 2026 apart from the AI-based intrusion response budget, and that there is no pan-government response body. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Bae said the related budget was raised 44% to 523.2 billion won in 2026 from 3,634 hundred million won. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Bae said an Oct 1 revision of the Information and Communications Network Act allows on-site investigation on hacking signs without a company report, and that its effectiveness has not yet appeared. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Bae said the Ministry of Science and ICT will take the lead in intrusion incident management and response, manual standardisation and spreading information to companies and across ministries. [ 2 , 3 ]
- People Power Party lawmaker Choi Hyung-doo said that leaving jurisdiction as an excuse in the era of AI hacking would amount to the ministry giving up its status as the responsible ministry. [ 3 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Deputy Prime Minister and Science and ICT Minister Bae Kyung-hoon said punitive economic sanctions over cyber breaches will be strengthened. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Bae said the Ministry of Science and ICT will take the lead in managing and responding to intrusion incidents and in spreading information to related companies and across ministries. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Bae said the related 2026 budget rose 44% to 523.2 billion won from 3,634 hundred million won. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Bae said an Oct 1 revision of the Information and Communications Network Act allows on-site investigation on hacking signs without a company report. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Lawmaker Seo Cheon-ho said intrusion incidents rose 26% and leak incidents 45% compared with 2023 and that leak victims increased fivefold, and that no pan-government response body exists. [ 2 , 3 ]
Still unclear
- What the strengthened punitive measures will consist of, including amounts and timing. Newsis refers to punitive fines and Yonhap and Kyunghyang to punitive economic sanctions, but the documents do not describe the measures beyond saying they will be strengthened.
- Whether a pan-government coordination body will be created. Lawmaker Seo said no such body exists and Bae said his ministry will lead the response; the documents do not state whether a new body is planned.
- Details of the cyber intrusion incidents behind the reported increase, including which companies were affected. Only aggregate figures from the audit are given; Kyunghyang refers to a financial-sector AI hacking case without naming victims or attackers.
- Choi Hyung-doo's criticism that ministries are using jurisdiction as an excuse, and Kim Nam-guk's demand that companies keep a full lifecycle record of hacking investigation data. Both remarks appear only in the Kyunghyang account and are not corroborated by the other documents.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- A revision of the Information and Communications Network Act takes effect, allowing on-site investigation on hacking signs even without a company report, according to Bae. [ 2 , 3 ]
- Newsis reports that Deputy Prime Minister Bae Kyung-hoon said punitive fines sanctions will be strengthened amid a series of cyber intrusion incidents. [ 1 ]
- Yonhap publishes Bae's remarks at the National Assembly audit, including the budget increase and the Oct 1 law revision. [ 2 ]
- Kyunghyang publishes its account of the audit, including criticism from lawmakers Choi Hyung-doo and Kim Nam-guk. [ 3 ]