South Korea’s Foreign Ministry is reissuing passports for 168 people, including President Lee Jae Myung and first lady Kim Hea Kyung, after a passenger list for the presidential aircraft containing their passport details was exposed online for about five months.
The government said the file was uploaded on June 2 to VirusTotal, a malware-scanning service, a week before Lee left on a 10-day trip to Belgium, Italy and France that included the Group of Seven summit. The list contained names in Korean and English, affiliations, job titles, dates of birth, passport numbers and passport issuance and expiration dates.
Those affected include Prime Minister Han Seong-sook, who was minister of SMEs and startups at the time, National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and other senior officials. The file also identified presidential security officers whose identities are normally kept confidential, as well as medical personnel, working-level officials and journalists who accompanied the delegation.
The exposure became public through a report by broadcaster KBS on Nov. 2, which said paid subscribers and antivirus companies could download the file without restriction. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Doo-soon said the ministry had requested investigations immediately after confirming the matter, before any media reports were published, and was working with the Korean National Police Agency to determine how the information was leaked. Government sources have said the National Intelligence Service is also involved.
The ministry said the exposure appears to stem from internal mishandling of documents rather than a hack, and it is examining whether files managed by its protocol office were deliberately leaked. The protocol office oversees presidential overseas trips and manages the passenger list for the presidential aircraft. A ministry official said the leaked Excel file resembled the format of documents the ministry prepares, but was not a formal government document bearing an official seal, and that ministry staff generally do not upload such files to external sites for malware scans.
“We had the information removed from the site in question and took measures to prevent further damage, including checking whether any additional personal information had been exposed,” Park said. He added that there were “currently no indications that the information was further spread or distributed.”
The presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, has ordered a review of security protocols for presidential overseas trips. Park confirmed at a briefing on Nov. 3 that new passports had been issued for the president and first lady, and said the ministry was moving to reissue passports for everyone affected, including presidential staff and their spouses.
Sources: Korea JoongAng Daily, The Korea Herald, South China Morning Post
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
