[Report] "Restaurant Payments, Stock Trading, Remote Work Stop" KT Outage... Daily Life Halted

KT Nationwide Internet Outage... Stock Trading and Payment Services Partially Disrupted
Stock Trading Access 'Unavailable'... Investor Inconvenience Also Reported

Around 11:30 a.m. on the 25th, a disruption occurred in KT's wired and wireless internet networks nationwide, causing severe chaos across the country. The photo shows a restaurant in Euljiro, Jung-gu, Seoul, which experienced operational difficulties due to payment errors. Photo by Seulgi Yoon seul97@asiae.co.kr

[Asia Economy reporters Han Seung-gon and Yoon Seul-gi] "How are you going to take responsibility for this stock trading issue!", "I was working from home and couldn't check the report.", "The KakaoTalk error is ridiculous."

Around 11:30 a.m. on the 25th, a nationwide outage occurred in KT's wired and wireless internet networks, causing severe chaos across the country and leading to ongoing complaints from citizens. Until about 12:04 p.m. that day, KT's internet network experienced an unexplained failure that prevented data transmission. This outage was reported to have occurred nationwide, including Seoul. Not only wireless and wired internet but also corporate networks were down, resulting in extreme confusion.

First, the inconvenience for small business owners reached its peak. Small merchants complained that their store POS systems, which are used for billing, were not working, causing disruptions to their operations. A restaurant owner in Euljiro, Jung-gu, Seoul, expressed frustration, saying, "We need to charge customers for the food they ate, but what on earth is going on?" He added, "It's absurd that something like this could happen."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Customers dining at restaurants were also unable to hide their frustration. Kim, a company employee in his 30s, said, "They asked me to pay in cash, but sorry, who carries cash these days?"

Another office worker in his 40s, Park, said, "I had cash, so I paid, but don't most office workers pay by card?" On the day of the outage, in the Euljiro area of Jung-gu, Seoul, restaurant owners recounted the tense situation, saying that some customers said, "I'll pay next time," and some just left without paying.

Some people also mentioned the 2018 November incident of the 'Seoul KT Ahyeon branch communication duct fire,' which led to a major communication crisis. Meanwhile, it was reported that securities firms' Mobile Trading Systems (MTS) also experienced connection errors. Students attending online classes faced difficulties as they could not connect, causing confusion.

Securities companies announced the trading system connection issues through notices. Mirae Asset Securities stated in their "Notice of Delayed Access to Media Due to KT Network Outage" that "From 11:15 a.m. today, a nationwide KT network outage has caused disruptions in KT wired and wireless communications and related services using KT's network. Customers using KT telecommunications and related services are advised to take note of this."

KB Securities also announced around 11:35 a.m. that "Customers using KT telecommunications are currently unable to access the 'M-able' service due to the KT network outage. We will provide further updates once the KT network is restored."

As a result, telecommunications stocks are showing weakness. As of 12:07 p.m. that day, KT was trading at 31,400 won, down 1.10% from the previous trading day.

Meanwhile, students attending remote classes also experienced inconveniences. A university student in his mid-20s said, "I'm not sure if the classes were properly processed," adding, "I understand the school is working on resolving the issue." There were also opinions about difficulties in working from home. Choi, a worker in his 30s, said, "Work was interrupted due to the communication error," and added, "I am preparing a report to inform the company."

Meanwhile, a KT official stated, "We have immediately activated the KT Crisis Management Committee and are taking swift action. We will do our best for a quick recovery."