'Employee Mobile Phone Forensics' Controversy... Kakao Mobility and Union Conflict 'Escalates'

First Meeting Held but Labor and Management Positions Remain Divided
"Obligation to Cooperate with Audit... Controversy Invited by Consent Form"

The Kakao Branch of the National Chemical Fiber Food Industry Labor Union held a picket protest on the 18th of this month in front of the Kakao Agit headquarters in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, protesting the forensic investigation of the mobile phones of some Kakao Mobility employees.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Kakao Mobility and the Kakao labor union have failed to narrow their differences over the controversy surrounding 'mobile phone forensics.' The two sides' claims of 'necessary procedures' and 'allegations of illegality' are running in parallel, deepening the conflict.

According to industry sources on the 24th, the Kakao branch of the National Chemical Fiber Food Industry Labor Union sent an official letter to Kakao Mobility on the 12th of this month, demanding the suspension of mobile phone forensic investigations on some employees, but received no response. They later met in person to discuss the matter but only confirmed their differences.

The mobile phone forensic controversy began when Kakao Mobility obtained 'consent forms for digital data acquisition and analysis' from some employees. It is known to be an effort to find the whistleblower related to reports that Kakao Mobility's acquisition of Free Now, Europe's largest taxi platform, had effectively fallen through. Earlier, the acquisition deadline for Free Now had long passed, and media reports stated that Jeong Shin-ah, the designated CEO of Kakao, led the rejection of the original acquisition plan at the Investment Review Committee, effectively causing the acquisition to fail.

The labor union is demanding the suspension of the forensics on grounds of illegality. They argue that the consent form lacks specific details regarding the reasons, purposes, scope of data collected, retention period, and disposal timing of the forensic investigation. They also view the retention period and disposal timing being stated only as 'upon completion of this audit' as a failure to follow proper legal procedures.

A union official said, "The company explains that the consent form represents a proper procedure, but it is difficult to have a dialogue when something improper is claimed to be proper." In protest against the controversy, the union held a picket demonstration at Kakao Agit in Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi Province, and is discussing future actions.

Despite the union's opposition, Kakao Mobility's stance remains contradictory. From the company's perspective, since a major incident of internal information leakage has occurred, they plan to proceed with the mobile phone forensics as scheduled. They explain that the procedure to verify the suspicions is necessary and that verbal guidance regarding the purpose, intent, and scope was provided during the consent process. A Kakao Mobility representative stated, "To ensure the objectivity, fairness, and protection of employees' privacy, the investigation was conducted through an external professional agency not affiliated with the company, and private content or information outside the scope of the investigation will not be examined."

Regarding this incident, some argue that Kakao Mobility invited controversy by obtaining consent forms. Attorney Koo Tae-eon of the law firm Lin explained, "Under the Commercial Act and the Labor Standards Act, employees have an obligation to cooperate with company audits. This obligation to cooperate can be seen as a basis for collecting personal information, and such limitations on privacy rights occur because of the employment contract."