South Korea dropping real-name policy after privacy breach
08/12, 5:30pm
Cyber IDs of 2/3 Korean population put at risk
In reaction to a privacy breach, the Korean Home Affairs Ministry has stated it will consider phasing out the real-name verification mandate. Last month, hackers breached one of South Korea's most popular Web portals and stole personal information from over 35 million users including their name, address, phone number, and their resident registration number, the Korean equivalent of an American's Social Security number. In part, the personal information was so comprehensive because the Korean Government has an authentication policy that requires larger Korean Internet sites to authenticate users' identities.