Will the Controversial 'Digital Gyodoso' Disappear if Blocked?

KCSC Decides 14-Day Access Block for 'Digital Gyodoso'
Digital Gyodoso States "Will Continue Operation in 2nd Phase"
Operation Possible by Changing Address Despite Block
No Solution Except Arresting Operators Through Investigation

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] The Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC) has initiated procedures to block access to the controversial 'Digital Kyodoso' site, but many point out that such a simple measure is only a temporary fix and does not address the fundamental solution. There is a high possibility that second and third problematic sites will emerge, and the administration's rush to block them one by one is problematic.

On the 14th, the KCSC held a Communications Review Subcommittee meeting and urgently placed the issue of handling the Digital Kyodoso site on the agenda for discussion. It is highly likely that access blocking will be decided during the review, which would mean that the site can no longer be accessed domestically.

However, this measure does not completely eliminate the Digital Kyodoso site. It is not about shutting down the server but simply blocking users from accessing it. If the operators respond by changing the server address, they can continue to operate. This is why pornographic sites blocked domestically have reappeared and resumed operation.

In fact, the Digital Kyodoso operators themselves blocked access to the site starting from the 8th after criticism that they posted personal information of innocent people. However, three days later, they posted a statement expressing that the second-term operators would continue running the site. Previously, the Digital Kyodoso operators had run similar expos? accounts on social network services (SNS) such as Instagram, and when those accounts were suspended due to illegal information, they continued their activities by creating new accounts. Based on this precedent, even if the site is blocked, it is highly likely that they will continue their activities using other addresses. They have been active by identifying individuals involved in the distribution and consumption of sexual exploitation materials such as the n-th room case and various sex crimes, and publicly sharing their personal information. However, this process has caused side effects where information of innocent people is also being shared.

Meanwhile, if Digital Kyodoso sites continue to appear with changed servers, there is currently no effective method other than finding each one, reviewing, and blocking it again. Professor Kwon Heon-young of Korea University Graduate School of Information Security said, "The KCSC is well aware that blocking access does not remove the cause of illegal activities, but there are no other technical measures available domestically," adding, "Ultimately, sanctioning the criminal acts themselves is a matter that criminal justice agencies must resolve through investigations."

The police have identified some operators and requested cooperation from the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) of a foreign country based on their access records. All identified operators have gone into hiding, and none confirmed to be staying domestically. Since international judicial cooperation is required, it is expected to take considerable time to apprehend the operators and seize and shut down servers. A police official stated, "Although the site is registered with a Russian domain, we cannot rule out the possibility of circumvention, so we are examining it from multiple angles," and added, "Posting information on the site itself is illegal, so we will do our best to swiftly apprehend those involved."