PRIVACY AND SECURITY PROTECTION UNDER KOREAN ECOMMERCE LAW AND PROPOSALS FOR ITS IMPROVEMENTS

Daum–Kakao Corporation (Kakao) isthe largest social network service (SNS) company in Korea. In early October 2014, Korean netizens, or citizens of the Internet, suddenly transferred their use of SNS from Kakao to Telegram, a SNS from Germany. This sudden transfer of users occurred as soon as Kakao revealed that it had complied with warrants from Korean investigation agencies that were conducting surveillance on its Kakao users’ communications. Newspapers named the incident the “Cyber Asylum from Korea.” On October 14, 2014, Kakao declared that it would no longer accept surveillance writs but rather will subject itself to criminal sanctions from the Korean government. Furthermore, the company introduced a private SNS in which no one could intervene. This incident demonstrated the sensitivity of the Korean netizens on privacy issues over security concerns.