Confidential Information Leakage Including Agent Personal Details
Likely Escaped to North Korea via Personal Laptop
It has been reported that information about overseas agents belonging to the Republic of Korea Army Intelligence Command, which is at the forefront of intelligence activities against North Korea, has been leaked. Due to this information leak, some agents dispatched abroad are expected to suffer significant losses, with some abruptly ceasing their activities and returning home.
According to Yonhap News on the 27th, about a month ago, the Intelligence Command detected that confidential information such as agents' personal details and private information had been leaked externally, and the military counterintelligence agency, the Republic of Korea Counterintelligence Command, is currently investigating the case.
The leaked information reportedly amounts to up to several thousand cases and includes details of 'White agents' operating under diplomatic cover as well as 'Black agents' disguised as unrelated to Korean government agencies. Agents whose identities have been exposed are practically impossible to redeploy, so the losses are expected to be considerable.
The military authorities stated that many of these agents are engaged in intelligence work related to North Korea, and they have confirmed that the leaked information has reached North Korea.
Authorities are investigating Mr. A, a civilian employee working at the Intelligence Command, in connection with this incident.
Mr. A, a former active-duty soldier, is assigned to the overseas operations department within the Intelligence Command. Authorities have confirmed circumstances indicating that classified materials were transferred from the Intelligence Command's internal computer to Mr. A's personal laptop. Mr. A currently claims that his laptop was hacked.
The military authorities consider it unlikely that classified information was stored on the personal laptop without Mr. A's knowledge. They are reportedly focusing on investigating the reasons and process by which classified information was stored on Mr. A's laptop.
The Intelligence Command's internal computers are network-isolated, making hacking from external online sources impossible.
Authorities find it hard to believe that an Intelligence Command employee was unaware of the risks of storing classified information on a personal computer, so they are exploring the possibility of intentionality in the information leak process, as well as the involvement of internal or external accomplices.
However, the military authorities stated that they are investigating all possibilities, including the chance that the hacking claim by Mr. A is true and that the data was intentionally left on the laptop to allow hacking, conducting a multifaceted investigation.
Meanwhile, the Intelligence Command previously experienced a case where a covert operations team leader was caught selling classified information abroad from 2013 to 2018. At that time, the Intelligence Command identified the leak only after more than five years since the crime and took delayed measures, which was evaluated as exposing vulnerabilities in counterintelligence activities.
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