Gov't unveils strong measures against illegal spam messages

[Anchor]

As the damage from incessant illegal spam messages continues to rise, the government has announced strong measures.

Punishments will be strengthened, including the complete confiscation of profits from illegal spam crimes, and a preemptive blocking system will be implemented to focus on crime prevention.

We have reporter Ji Hyung-cheol.

[Report]

Annoying illegal spam messages.

It seems there’s not a day without receiving them.

[Lee Dong-joo/Incheon Seo-gu: "When I receive strange messages, I feel bad. How did they get my contact information or phone number?"]

If one lets their guard down, it could lead to voice phishing or even the theft of financial information.

In the first half of this year, there were 210 million reports related to illegal spam, averaging over 11 cases per mobile phone subscriber per month.

As the damage escalates, the government has introduced strong measures.

First, all profits from crimes through illegal spam will be confiscated.

Additionally, telecommunications companies will not be able to avoid penalties if they condone or neglect illegal spam.

The process for sending bulk messages will also become more stringent.

[Kim Tae-kyu/Acting Chairman of the Korea Communications Commission: "We will require identity verification every time bulk messages are sent, and multi-authentication for users of this service will be mandatory."]

A strong preemptive blocking system will also be implemented.

Through verification of tampered numbers, blacklists, and AI validation at all channels, including resellers and telecommunications companies, there will be double and triple monitoring. Even if messages reach smartphones, the built-in AI will filter them again and send them to the 'blocked messages' folder.

[Ryu Je-myung/Director of Network Policy at the Ministry of Science and ICT: "We aim to derive fundamental solutions across all stages of message sending, receiving, and the user's device."]

However, this measure is limited to text messages, and there are concerns that spam through platforms like KakaoTalk or Telegram may surge, which remains a challenge to address.

This is Ji Hyung-cheol from KBS News.