Samsung Electronics. [Yonhap]
Samsung Electronics. [Yonhap]

Samsung Electronics will require employees to post under their real names on NOW Talk, the company's primary internal online community, following the enforcement of an amended telecommunications law.

According to industry sources Monday, Samsung Electronics notified employees that NOW Talk will switch to a full real-name system starting at midnight Tuesday.

NOW Talk is an internal platform where Samsung Electronics employees share company news and policy updates. Previously, users could post anonymously. Under the new system, authors' names will appear on all posts and comments.

The change follows the amended Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection, which took effect July 7 and codifies liability for damages arising from violations of others' personal rights and the spread of false or manipulated information.

The revised law also expands the definition of illegal information, introduces new regulations on false and manipulated content, and establishes liability provisions for distributing such material.

Samsung Electronics added that it had considered a pattern of incidents in which employees used anonymity to defame colleagues or spread unverified claims, undermining the company's internal communication culture.

The company said rights violations on the internal board had worsened due to abusive language and defamatory posts on NOW Talk, and that it had recently received workplace harassment improvement guidance from the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

"We are restructuring the way NOW Talk operates in order to protect employees from defamation and violations of personal rights, and to establish a culture of communication based on mutual respect," Samsung Electronics said.

Existing posts written before the transition will not be retroactively converted to display real names. Samsung Electronics said it will continue to monitor NOW Talk after the change for illegal content, false or manipulated information, and violations of operating guidelines.

"If cases that undermine a healthy internal communication culture continue to occur, we will make additional operational changes to ensure NOW Talk remains a safe channel for communication," the company said.


hope@heraldcorp.com