SEOUL, July 17 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s privacy regulator is seeking sweeping new powers to investigate data breaches, reward whistleblowers and compensate victims, as the number of reported leaks climbs sharply across the country.
The Personal Information Protection Commission said Thursday that it plans to introduce a reporting reward system and create a consolidated fund to support victims of personal-data breaches.
Under one proposal, whistleblowers could receive rewards worth as much as 30% of the administrative fines imposed in a case. The commission said the figure has not been finalized but is modeled on reward programs used by other regulators.
The agency also plans to strengthen statutory damages by clarifying corporate liability and placing more of the burden on companies to prove that they took adequate precautions and responded properly after a breach.
Revenue from privacy fines could be directed toward compensating victims and restoring their rights through a new integrated fund, to be developed with other government ministries. Regulators are also considering a settlement mechanism under which companies could voluntarily propose corrective measures and victim compensation.
The overhaul comes as reported data breaches accelerate. Cases rose from 307 in 2024 to 447 in 2025, while 432 incidents were reported in the first half of this year alone.
Breaches involving more than one million records would be handled by dedicated investigative teams, while...
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