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Newsletter | December 2016, Issue 4
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TECHNOLOGY, MEDIA & TELECOMMUNICATIONS
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Korea Communications Commission Proposes Key Amendments to the Network Act
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In response to the criticism that the current online privacy regulations in Korea are insufficient to accommodate technical developments and global trends, the Korea Communications Commission (“KCC”) announced the following proposed amendments to the Act on the Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (“Network Act”) on September 23, 2016. The amendments aim to meet global privacy protection standards, while also providing for reasonable regulations.
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Until November 2, 2016, the KCC accepted opinions from various industries. Now, the KCC is finalizing the proposed amendments.
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Key Amendments
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| 1. |
Additional Exceptions to Prior Consent Requirement when Collecting, Using or Transferring Personal Information (Amended Act Article 22(2))
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In principle, the Network Act requires a service provider to obtain prior consent before collecting, using or transferring personal information.
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Currently, the Network Act only includes a very narrow exception to such a requirement when economic or technical obstacles make obtaining such prior consent difficult.
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Proposed Amendments: Introduces two new exceptions, so that prior consent to collect, use or transfer personal information will no longer be required when: (i) entering and performing a contract; and (ii) protecting life or property.
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| 2. |
New Mandatory Notification Requirement for Sale of Personal Information (Amended Act Article 24-2(1), Item 5)
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Currently, the Network Act does not clearly limit or restrict the sale of personal information to third parties when the information subject has consented to having his/her personal information transferred.
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Proposed Amendment: To ensure that informed consent is obtained, information subjects must be specifically notified that their personal information will be provided to third parties in exchange for payment.
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| 3. |
Right to Stop Personal Information Processing (Amended Act Article 30)
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Currently, the Network Act acknowledges an information subject’s “right to withdraw consent to the collection, use, and provision of personal information”.
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As the right presumes that consent from the information subject had originally been obtained, the law was unclear on information subject’s rights when his/her personal information had been collected, used and/or provided without consent.
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Proposed Amendment: Clarifies this issue, and strengthens the information subject’s autonomy over his/her personal information. Now, the information subject has a “right to request cessation of personal information processing.” Even when personal information was collected, used, and provided without consent, information subjects will be able to retrospectively request that such activities be stopped.
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| 4. |
Additional Exceptions to Prior Consent Requirement for Overseas Transfer of Personal Information (Amended Act Article 63(3))
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The current Network Act was criticized for being unduly burdensome regarding the overseas transfer of personal information, mainly since the prior consent requirement could only be waived when performing a contract, and for convenience of the information subject.
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Proposed Amendment: Lessens such a burden by introducing two more exceptions to the prior consent requirement for the overseas transfer of personal information: (i) when there is a special provision in other laws or international agreements; and (ii) when the overseas recipient of the personal information has obtained certain certifications designated by the KCC.
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Back to Main Page
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