Legislative Notice for Amendments to Subordinate Laws of Three Information Security Acts... Public Comments Accepted Until October

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the 3rd that it will publicly notify the amendment bills of subordinate laws (enforcement decree, enforcement rules) of the three information protection laws to establish the foundation for the introduction of new technology electronic signatures, create grounds for information protection certification of information and communication network-connected devices, and organize the designation and evaluation procedures of major information and communication infrastructure.

First, as a follow-up measure to the full revision of the Electronic Signature Act to provide the public with diverse and convenient electronic signature methods, amendment bills for the enforcement decree and enforcement rules have been prepared, and public opinions will be collected until October 8.

The amendment introduces a voluntary certification system to evaluate the reliability and safety of electronic signature services provided by electronic signature certification service providers under the revised Electronic Signature Act. Accordingly, procedures and methods for evaluation and recognition institutions to assess compliance with the operational standards of electronic signature certification tasks have been established. Additionally, criteria and methods for subscriber identity verification by electronic signature certification service providers have also been presented.

The Ministry of Science and ICT will hold a related online public hearing on September 11. Furthermore, ‘Notices on Operational Standards for Electronic Signature Certification Tasks, Electronic Signature Certification Task Guidelines, and International Common Evaluation Notices’ will also be prepared and revised to coincide with the enforcement of the amended Electronic Signature Act on December 10.

The Ministry of Science and ICT expects that "once the Electronic Signature Act and its subordinate laws are amended, a foundation for revitalizing competition in the electronic signature market will be established, leading to the emergence of various electronic signature technologies and services, and improving the convenience of electronic signature use for the public."

The amendment bill for the enforcement decree, prepared as a follow-up measure to the revision of the 'Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection' to strengthen ICT convergence security, will collect public opinions from September 2 to October 13.

By exemplifying the scope of devices subject to information protection guideline recommendations as representative convergence industry sectors, the amendment clarifies the scope of devices subject to information protection guidelines, response to infringement incidents, and certification of devices, and features the establishment of grounds for reward payments to security vulnerability reporters and the designation of specialized institutions for information protection measures. Detailed matters such as notices on information protection certification and guidelines for information protection measures will also be announced.

Lastly, the amendment bill for the enforcement decree, issued to ensure consistency with the enforcement decree following the revision of the Information and Communications Infrastructure Protection Act last December, will collect public opinions from September 4 to October 16.

The amendment stipulates that the head of a central administrative agency decides on designation after deliberation by the Information and Communications Infrastructure Protection Committee and notifies within '30 days.' Additionally, the head of the management agency ordered to conduct vulnerability analysis and evaluation by the central administrative agency must carry it out within '6 months,' clearly defining the implementation period for vulnerability analysis and evaluation.

Heo Seongwook, Director of Information Protection Network Policy at the Ministry of Science and ICT, stated, “When the three information protection laws are enforced this December, the information protection system will be solidified through electronic signature reform, information protection certification, and infrastructure evaluation, greatly enhancing convenience for the public.” He added, “We will fully collect stakeholders’ opinions to ensure that preparations such as certification and evaluation in response to changes in information protection systems proceed smoothly.”