SKT Says USIM Replacement Nearly Complete... Full Business Resumption Still Undecided

Despite Near Completion of Replacements, No Government Notice on Resumption Timing
Actual Remaining Reservations at 460,000 When Accounting for 'No-Shows'

SK Telecom announced on June 19 that it is expected to complete its large-scale complimentary USIM replacement operation by the end of the day, but the timing for a full resumption of business operations remains undecided.

During a daily briefing on the cyber breach incident held at Samhwa Tower in Jung-gu, Seoul, SK Telecom stated, "Most of the USIM replacements are expected to be completed by today," but added, "We have not received any separate notification regarding the resumption of new business operations."

Lim Bongho, Head of SKT's MNO (Mobile Network Operator) Division, explained at the briefing, "There is no set schedule or guideline from the government yet," and "At this point, we are unable to provide a timeline for resuming business operations." SK Telecom has been reporting the status of USIM replacements and inventory supply to the Ministry of Science and ICT on a daily basis, and since June 16, has prioritized the resumption of new business through eSIMs, which do not require a physical USIM.

According to SK Telecom, as of the previous day, approximately 1.1 million customers had registered for USIM replacement. Of these, about 640,000 customers who received a notification to visit a store within a week after being informed of their eligibility for replacement did not show up. Assuming these customers do not intend to replace their USIMs, the actual remaining number of customers is around 460,000, according to SK Telecom.

SK Telecom also stated that about 300,000 to 350,000 USIM replacements are expected to be completed in a single day, and excluding the no-show customers, the replacement process is essentially complete.

The USIM replacement process for MVNO users has also been mostly completed. MVNO users on the SK Telecom network have replaced their USIMs through their respective MVNO providers.

Kim Heeseop, Head of SKT's PR Center, emphasized, "Each store has a sufficient supply of USIMs and staff." In fact, the current inventory stands at around 1.5 million USIMs, and an additional 10 million units are scheduled to arrive between July and August. The cumulative number of USIMs secured since the hacking incident has reached 21 million units.

Starting June 20, a new USIM replacement reservation system will be implemented. Customers will be able to select their preferred store, date, and time, and if a store's inventory is depleted, reservations for that date will be automatically blocked. If a customer attempts to reserve on a fully booked date, available dates will be sent via MMS.

Meanwhile, SK Telecom plans to announce compensation measures for its distribution channels, whose business operations were suspended due to this incident, in the latter half of next week.