Stop 'Targeting' Malicious Complaints... Local Governments Conceal Public Officials' Real Names

Position and Duties Only Indicated... Trigger for Death of Gimpo City Official
"Officials Must Be Protected for the People"

Seongbuk District Office is conducting a simulation training to prepare for malicious civil complaints.
[Photo by Seongbuk-gu]

As a public official in Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, who was suffering from malicious complaints, died, more local governments are refraining from disclosing the names of public officials. This is to prevent so-called 'doxxing.'

Gimpo City changed the names of employees, which had been disclosed along with their duties and positions on the city hall website, to non-disclosure starting from the 8th. After recent internal discussions, the city decided to disclose only the last names of each employee in the form of 'Kim○○.' In addition, the photos of employees that were posted on the staff placement charts in front of each department's entrance were also removed.

This move to reduce the disclosure of personal information of public officials has been spreading since the 9th-grade public official A (37) in Gimpo-si was found dead in his vehicle on the 5th of last month.

A training session for handling malicious complaints is being conducted in Damyang-gun, Jeollanam-do.
[Photo by Damyang-gun]

On February 29, Mr. A received a complaint when traffic congestion occurred due to pothole repair work on a road in Gimpo. Subsequently, on an online cafe, personal information such as his real name, affiliated department, and direct phone number was disclosed, claiming that he was the official who approved the construction.

A Gimpo City official explained, “Because the deceased’s personal information was disclosed on the city hall website, he was targeted for 'doxxing.' To prevent this from happening again, we decided not to disclose names.”

Recently, local governments such as Haeundae-gu in Busan, Seo-gu, Michuhol-gu, and Bupyeong-gu in Incheon, Chungju-si in Chungbuk, and Cheonan-si in Chungnam have also removed employee names from their websites. In the cases of Michuhol-gu, Bupyeong-gu, Chungju-si, and Cheonan-si, even last names are not disclosed, and only positions and duties are listed on the websites.

On the morning of March 8, a memorial rite is being held in front of Gimpo City Hall in Gyeonggi Province to mourn civil servant A (39), who died after suffering from protest complaints. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Experts generally respond positively to the trend of reducing the disclosure of public officials’ personal information. However, they also urge local governments to establish supplementary measures to strengthen communication with complainants to prevent side effects.

Professor Kim Dong-won of the Department of Public Administration at Incheon National University (President of the Korean Association for Personnel Administration) said, “If more young people leave public service due to malicious complaints and avoid public office, ultimately the people will suffer. Measures to protect public officials are necessary for the people.” He added, “If efforts to keep real names undisclosed and to improve communication channels are well combined, side effects can also be prevented.”

Meanwhile, the police are investigating three complainants who directly called Mr. A with complaints, and are also identifying the authors of posts disclosing personal information and perpetrators who coerced group complaints.