South Korea’s PIPC explains annual public-system penetration testing duty

South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) published a revised Guide to the Standards for Safeguarding Personal Information. It explains the amended Notice requiring public system operators to conduct vulnerability inspections and penetration testing at least once a year, and to promptly remediate and improve vulnerabilities identified by those checks.

The revision is guidance rather than a further amendment to the Standards. The operative annual testing and remediation duties come from the Notice amendment made on 1 July, while the new guide adds explanations and FAQs intended to help public system operating institutions understand and fulfil them. The PIPC said the amendment was aimed at preventing public-sector personal information breaches caused by external hacking.

Annual testing and remediation

The PIPC has added explanations of the newly established provisions on vulnerability inspections and penetration testing for public systems. It has also added related FAQs. The Notice requires annual inspections and penetration testing, and says vulnerabilities identified through the checks must be addressed without delay.

For public-sector operators, the practical compliance task is therefore not limited to commissioning an annual scan. They must conduct the required inspections and penetration testing, identify vulnerabilities and promptly correct and improve them. In Atlas’s view, the guide’s emphasis on both testing and remediation makes unresolved findings, rather than the existence of a test report alone, the likely supervisory focus.

The PIPC has updated examples and explanations to reflect changes in how personal information is processed and secured, including artificial intelligence and newer authentication methods.

The guide expands its authentication examples from seven types, including passwords, one-time passwords and SMS, to 12. The additions include passkeys, QR codes and mobile applications. It also adds material on adopting post-quantum cryptography in response to developments in quantum computing.

The PIPC separately stresses cryptographic key management. Its example says keys should not be stored in plaintext in application source code or configuration files.

APIs, delayed updates and passwords

The FAQ section adds inspection points for the secure use and management of application programming interfaces (APIs), particularly APIs used to link information between systems. It also supplements the explanation of safeguards to consider where system updates are delayed.

That combination is significant for organisations operating interconnected services. API security and patch delays are treated as practical parts of applying the safety measures standards, rather than as issues confined to a separate application-security programme. Firms should expect their control evidence to cover how connected interfaces are managed and what compensating safeguards apply when updates cannot be made on schedule.

The revised password FAQ reflects international trends on password composition and rotation. It notes that changing passwords too frequently can have adverse effects, including users choosing simple passwords that are easier to remember. The PIPC has therefore moved the discussion beyond a purely mechanical password-change rule.

PIPC Director-General of the Personal Information Policy Bureau Lee Sang-min said the revision should improve understanding of the Standards and reduce confusion when processors apply safeguards in their working environments. He said the Commission would continue updating the guide as personal information processing environments and technology change.

The immediate next step for public system operators is to incorporate the 1 July Notice amendment into their annual vulnerability inspection and penetration-testing programmes, and to address identified weaknesses without delay.