Visitors have their temperatures checked at a national cemetery honoring those killed in the 1980 democracy uprising in the southwestern city of Gwangju on May 18, 2020. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, May 19 (Korea Bizwire) — A majority of South Koreans have used contact tracing maps developed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and are finding disclosure and analysis of personal information appropriate.
According to a survey of 1,038 people and 270 experts conducted by the presidential committee on the fourth industrial revolution, 58.6 percent of Koreans said they had used big data services such as “map or route information of confirmed patients” related to COVID-19, and 92.7 percent of users said the services were useful.
Asked whether the analysis and disclosure of a confirmed person’s personal information was appropriate, 90.3 percent said it was appropriate.
As the three data-related bills – the Personal Information Protection Act, Information and Communications Network Act and Protection of Credit Information Act – passed in the National Assembly in January, unidentifiable personal information can be used for research and commercial statistics.
In this regard, 71.2 percent of the respondents said they were aware of the legal revision, while 32.1 percent said they were even aware of the contents.
In addition, 77.4 percent said they were willing to provide personal information under the revised law, while only 86.6 percent said they would provide the information when concerns about providing personal information would be resolved.
Among the factors of concern were the disclosure of personal information, accounting for 44.4 percent, reckless use, accounting for 43.6 percent, and the monopoly of personal information, accounting for 11.5 percent.
D. M. Park (dmpark@koreabizwire.com)
