SKT Expands USIM Protection Service to Budget Phone Customers on Its Network After Hacking Incident

Available for Subscription at Budget Phone Customer Centers
Roaming Usable During Registration, System to Be Improved in First Half of Year
Customer Center Operating Hours Extended from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

SK Telecom has decided to extend protection to customers using budget phone services on its network in order to prevent USIM information leaks caused by hacker attacks. According to industry sources on April 24, SKT will expand its USIM protection service to 14 budget phone companies that use its telecommunications network.

Budget phone users can immediately sign up for the service through each provider's customer center, and online registration via the website will also become available sequentially through cooperation with the budget phone operators. SKT explained, "Since the USIM information of budget phone customers using the SKT network is also stored on our servers, this is a preemptive measure to prevent any potential damage."

The USIM protection service is designed to prevent third parties from illegally duplicating or stealing a customer's USIM information to access telecommunications services on other devices. SKT emphasized that customers can securely protect their USIM with a simple registration process.

Currently, there is a restriction that requires users to deactivate roaming services in order to activate the USIM protection feature. However, SKT plans to improve the system within the first half of the year so that customers can use roaming services even while subscribed to the protection service. In addition, starting today, SKT has simplified the process so that customers can sign up for the USIM protection service immediately after canceling only the roaming plan via the T World app or website settings.

To provide smooth service, SKT has extended the operating hours of the 114 customer center from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and the newly established Cyber Incident Response Center will operate 24 hours a day. For digitally vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, the 114 customer center will proactively call to guide them through the service registration and, upon consent, assist with direct enrollment.

An SKT official stated, "We plan to develop additional ways for customers to use the USIM protection service more conveniently."

Meanwhile, 1.01 million people newly subscribed to the USIM protection service in a single day yesterday, bringing the total number of subscribers to 1.61 million as of 8 a.m. on April 24. As a result, a surge of customers visiting the online customer center T World led to wait times of up to nearly one hour.