South Korea's revised privacy rules take effect with tougher penalties
( September 10, 2026, 05:27 GMT | Official Statement) -- MLex Summary: South Korea’s revised Personal Information Protection Act and its enforcement decree will take effect on Friday, introducing tougher penalties, stronger governance requirements and a new data-breach notification requirement. The Personal Information Protection Commission said Thursday that the revised law allows penalties of up to 10 percent of total revenue for repeat violations, large-scale breaches affecting 10 million or more people and breaches occurring after a company fails to comply with PIPC corrective orders. Under the revision, companies with annual revenue exceeding 180 billion won ($134 million) that process personal data of at least 1 million people will be required to obtain board approval for the appointment or dismissal of their chief privacy officers and report the appointment to the PIPC within six months. The revised law also requires companies to notify individuals within 72 hours when there is high and reasonable likelihood that their personal data has been compromised even before a breach is confirmed. The statement is attached (in Korean)....
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