The National Human Rights Commission has recommended that the police obtain consent from victims, witnesses, and other parties involved in a case before providing related video footage to media outlets or other organizations.
On June 2, the Commission announced that on May 19, it had advised the Commissioner General of the National Police Agency to revise the "Regulations on Publicity of Police Investigation Cases," so that when providing video footage of victims, witnesses, or other involved parties, the police must obtain consent from the data subjects. The Commission also emphasized that even if consent is obtained, any information in the video that could reveal or allow inference of the identity of those involved must be removed.
This recommendation was made after a voice phishing victim filed a complaint with the Commission, claiming that video footage related to their case was distributed to the media without their consent.
The victim had received a message from a voice phishing organization stating, "We have kidnapped your daughter. If you want to save her, prepare cash and gold bars," and went to a gold shop. Noticing the victim's unusual behavior, a gold shop employee called 112, leading to the arrest of the suspect, who was attempting to receive cash and gold bars from the victim, in the act.
Afterwards, the police forwarded the case to the prosecution and distributed video footage and press materials to the media to raise awareness about the dangers of voice phishing crimes and to prevent further incidents.
The police explained to the Commission that all personal information in the footage provided to the media had been blurred, and that after the victim filed a complaint, they immediately requested the deletion of the related articles, so the footage has now been removed.
However, the Commission determined that "even though blurring was applied, the video was provided in a way that made it possible to identify or infer the identities of the parties involved."
The Commission further stated, "Distributing the video without obtaining the prior consent of the complainant, who is a crime victim, constitutes a violation of the constitutionally guaranteed right to informational self-determination."
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