South Korea plans cybersecurity overhaul after attacks hit banks, crypto firms

South Korea is set to overhaul its cybersecurity measures following a review that uncovered security flaws at 130 financial firms, including cryptocurrency exchanges. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) plans to implement stricter cybersecurity assessments, enhanced threat monitoring, and more frequent security evaluations for financial institutions.

The review found that over 100,000 customer records, including personal details and identification numbers, were exposed across the affected firms. Gopax operator Streami and crypto trading platform Prabang were among the firms implicated, with Prabang reporting a October 2nd hack that exposed customer information. Larger financial institutions will be required to conduct vulnerability assessments at least twice a year, while smaller companies may benefit from the use of artificial intelligence in security monitoring.

The regulator is also considering allowing more cybersecurity inspections outside of regular assessment schedules to address urgent threats. The FSC is still investigating whether these incidents involved AI use or were linked to the same attackers.