South Korean police launch investigation into leak of presidential plane passenger information

Seoul: South Korean Police said on Tuesday they have launched a formal investigation into the online leak of personal information belonging to 168 individuals, including President Lee Jae Myung, his wife and Cabinet ministers.

Earlier in June, a file titled "Passenger list (South Korea-Belgium)" was posted on a paid, security-related website, according to the Korean National Police Agency.

The file reportedly contained the personal information of 168 individuals, including Lee and his wife, key government officials, staff members of Cheong Wa Dae and the foreign ministry, members of the Presidential Security Service and journalists covering Cheong Wa Dae. The information is said to include their names in both Korean and English, affiliations, job titles, dates of birth, passport numbers, and passport issuance and expiration dates, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The website in question is a platform that allows users to scan files or web addresses for malicious code. Paid members and other users are reportedly able to download files uploaded to the platform.

After earlier opening a preliminary probe into the leak, police said they have switched to a formal criminal investigation.

Police suspect that the file, which contained information about individuals aboard the presidential aircraft during Lee's visits to Belgium, Italy and France in June, was uploaded to the platform in the process of being scanned for malicious code.

The file reportedly remained accessible for about five months after being uploaded on June 2, ahead of the presidential tour, but is now no longer accessible.

Cheong Wa Dae said it has taken responsive measures after becoming aware of the online information leak and the foreign ministry and other relevant agencies would carry out further actions.

The foreign ministry, which is also investigating the incident, separately reported the leak to the country's privacy watchdog on Tuesday.

An official at the Personal Information Protection Commission said the agency plans to verify details of the leak based on the report.

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