South Korea’s Cabinet approved revisions to its communication law on Tuesday, significantly increasing penalties for illegal spam senders and negligent mobile carriers. The amended legislation will impose fines of up to 6% of relevant sales on those who send unsolicited and illegal messages, as well as mobile operators that fail to adequately prevent their transmission, according to the Korea Media Communications Commission (KMCC).
This revision to the “Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection” goes further by allowing for the confiscation of proceeds gained from these illegal activities, in addition to the hefty fines.
The impetus for the revision stemmed from widespread criticism that the previous regulations, which only imposed fines of up to 30 million won (approximately $19,000 USD), were insufficient to deter spam senders. Critics argued that the potential profits from illegal spamming far outweighed the penalties, rendering them ineffective.
The new regulations extend liability to mobile carriers, holding them accountable for inadequate preventative measures against spam transmission. These carriers will now face significant financial penalties for failing to protect users from unsolicited messages.
The KMCC has announced plans to develop a detailed enforcement decree and consult with experts to establish a clear framework for implementing and enforcing the new fines.
“This revision is expected to alleviate public inconvenience caused by illegal spam messages and mitigate potential harm,” stated KMCC Chair Kim Jong-cheol in a press release, highlighting the anticipated positive impact of the strengthened regulations.
