Seoul Gangseo-gu to Delete Movement Data of COVID-19 Confirmed Cases Older Than 14 Days

Taking Action to Recover from Damages Such as Privacy Invasion and Revenue Decline of Visited Businesses

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Gangseo-gu, Seoul (Mayor Noh Hyun-song) will officially operate the 'COVID-19 Cyber Quarantine Team' from the 10th to delete confirmed patients' movement information after the information disclosure period has passed.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters has set guidelines to delete movement routes 14 days after the confirmed COVID-19 patient last contacted others.

However, the reality was the voices of residents saying, "I run a store, but due to information spread on the internet, I am stigmatized with 'COVID-19 stigma,' causing severe economic damage."

This is because movement information still remained on portals or personal SNS even after the disclosure period had ended.

The district decided to operate the 'COVID-19 Cyber Quarantine Team' to prevent exposure of confirmed patients' personal information and reduce secondary damage such as economic losses caused by information disclosure.

The 'Cyber Quarantine Team,' recruited through the COVID-19 Overcoming Hope Job Project, investigates confirmed patients' movement information on the internet, including portals and SNS, and directly requests account operators to delete posts.

Posts that are not deleted will be requested for deletion cooperation from the relevant accounts through the Korea Internet & Security Agency.

A 'Cyber Quarantine Reporting Center' will also be operated to receive applications for deletion of movement information via the district website or phone.

Additionally, the district plans to conduct a 'COVID-19 Confirmed Patient Movement Deletion Campaign' to raise awareness of damages caused by movement information and encourage voluntary participation of residents in deleting information after the disclosure period.

In particular, the quarantine team, which began pilot activities on the 3rd, found 247 posts past the disclosure period and requested deletion, achieving the deletion of 115 posts.

Mayor Noh Hyun-song said, "The COVID-19 Cyber Quarantine Team was established in response to residents struggling due to movement information," and added, "For everyone's safety, disclosed confirmed patient information must now be forgotten for individual happiness."