Police to sack officers who leak investigative details in aftermath of Lee Sun-kyun's death

A police patch on an officer's uniform [YONHAP]

Police officers who leak investigation details will face harsher disciplinary action and even dismissal, a measure prompted by a data breach during the investigation of late actor Lee Sun-kyun's alleged drug use.

The Korean National Police Commission said Wednesday that it approved a comprehensive set of data-leakage prevention measures that will take effect this month.

The new measures will allow police authorities to sack or remove officers who mishandle investigative information. These penalties will be imposed when compromised information causes material damage or highly classified data is leaked.

Previous punishments were relatively light, such as suspending promotions for a certain period.

Police will embed a watermark — a digital stamp showing the owner or viewer of a file — on all investigative records to tighten controls over information flow. Officers must also refrain from using social media platforms to communicate with one another about cases.

Furthermore, an internal data protection system dubbed “data loss prevention” will be introduced on an electronic platform shared by law enforcement agencies such as prosecutors and police.

“The police will reinforce data security measures by letting officers participate in relevant training and raising awareness of their importance,” an official from the National Police Agency said.

Regional police agencies and offices nationwide will undergo semiannual tests to evaluate police officers’ understanding, he added.

Police recently uncovered multiple cases of officers leaking investigation details.

An officer from the Incheon Police Agency was arrested in March on charges of leaking information about actor Lee’s case.

Lee, renowned for his role in director Bong Joon-ho’s Oscar-winning film “Parasite” (2019), eventually took his own life.

Two other officers from the same agency were also referred to the prosecution after spilling protected details of voice phishing scammers nine times.

BY KIM SUN-MI, LEE SOO-JUNG [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]