"Expansion of Educational Data Provision" 4th Committee, 7th Data Special Committee Meeting Held

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] The government is set to expand data provision in the education sector and strengthen the development of data protection technologies to prevent information leakage and misuse.

The 4th Industrial Revolution Committee (4th IRC) held the 7th ‘Data Special Committee (Data Special Committee)’ meeting on the 18th at the 10th-floor conference room of Seoul Central Post Office (Post Tower).

The first agenda item, ‘Provision Plan for Unopened Core Data III (Education Sector),’ is a plan to expand the provision of education data, prepared by comprehensively considering the high public interest, sensitivity, ripple effects, and public nature of the education sector.

First, considering the sensitivity of education data, MyData will be introduced to enhance openness and accessibility based on the consent of data subjects such as students and parents. Education data covering the entire lifespan from elementary and secondary education to lifelong education will be reviewed by academic system, field, and item, and then sequentially provided as public MyData.

Additionally, to support career and college guidance, department selection, and major suitability assessment, the standardization and opening of university curricula by department will be promoted step by step. Information on university departments and courses, as well as syllabi, will be standardized and databased for provision, enabling various users such as teachers, students, and companies to access and utilize the data easily and conveniently.

Based on the Data 3 Act and the pseudonymized information utilization framework in the education sector, efforts will be made to discover exemplary cases of pseudonymized information use, provide education, and activate safe zones. Lastly, through the Edu Data Service System (EDSS), items currently provided after review that can be disclosed will be selected and converted into open data, with plans to add and expand open data and improve accessibility through the provision of the latest data and open API linkage.

The second agenda item, ‘Core Technology Development Strategy for Data Protection,’ was prepared to strengthen necessary technology development amid increasing concerns about information leakage and misuse due to the expansion of data utilization, while complementing support for the industrial application of developed technologies.

First, under the strategy to secure global competitiveness in data protection technologies, the committee decided to simultaneously pursue the acquisition of common foundational technologies for data security and the development of applied technologies to support data utilization. Furthermore, the application of data protection technologies will be encouraged in demonstration projects such as MyData and flagship projects, and new data protection technologies will be applied to the national statistics system to enhance the use of public data. Preparations will also be made for the transition to a next-generation data protection system based on quantum cryptography.

The final agenda item reviewed the progress of the ‘National Data Policy Promotion Direction’ announced last February. The 4th IRC formed five subcommittees and a legislative task force to ensure smooth implementation of the Data119 project, establishing agendas through weekly subcommittee meetings and subcommittee chair consultations, and deliberating and resolving them through the Data Special Committee.

Thanks to the expertise of private members of the Data Special Committee and close cooperation with related ministries, visible achievements such as policy improvements and expanded data openness have been realized. However, some tasks have been delayed beyond the original schedule due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation and pending legislative amendments in the National Assembly. The 4th IRC plans to strengthen ongoing task management through subcommittee meetings and conduct a second review in January next year to analyze the performance of each task.

Chairman Yoon Sung-ro emphasized, “The introduction of education MyData among the education data discussed this time is expected to increase the public’s convenience in accessing and using educational information. The core technology development strategy for data protection will create an environment where people can use data safely and conveniently, and will have the effect of securing a technological lead in the data security market.”