The Seoul Metropolitan Government will implement a new administrative telephone service improvement plan. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Sept. 5 (Korea Bizwire) – The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on September 4 that it will implement a new administrative telephone service improvement plan aimed at enhancing citizen convenience and protecting government employees.
Under the new system, when Seoul city officials make calls to citizens’ Android smartphones, the caller ID will display not only the administrative phone number but also the name of the calling department, such as “Seoul City — Department.”
This change addresses a common issue where citizens often mistook calls from the city government for spam or advertising due to the unfamiliar “02-2133″ prefix. The new system is expected to reduce such misunderstandings and improve both citizen convenience and administrative efficiency.
However, due to Apple’s security policies, this service will not be available for iPhones. Instead, iPhone users will receive a notification via KakaoTalk, a popular messaging app in South Korea.
In addition to the caller ID change, the city government is implementing measures to protect its employees from abusive callers. Calls lasting more than 20 minutes will now be automatically terminated after a voice message stating, “The call will be automatically ended for efficient consultation and employee protection.” Previously, calls could continue for up to 30 minutes before an employee could end the call after providing a warning.
To further address issues of verbal abuse, all incoming calls will be automatically recorded. Callers will be informed of this before the connection is established. This policy will initially be applied to departments that handle high volumes of citizen inquiries, such as transportation and housing, with plans for expansion in the future.
The city also plans to implement an AI-based system that can automatically detect abusive language, threats, or sexual harassment in calls, issuing warnings and terminating calls when necessary. This system is scheduled for a trial run in November.
Furthermore, the internal “Seoul Phone” app used by city employees has been updated so that when staff members call citizens using the app, it displays the administrative phone number rather than the employee’s personal mobile number.
Cho Sung-ho, head of the General Affairs Department at Seoul City Hall, stated, “These changes will not only provide better administrative services to citizens but also offer practical protection for public officials.”
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
