National audit begins; president urges Assembly to avoid 'fake news and wasteful political attacks'

President Lee Jae Myung speaks at a Cabinet meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae Myung speaks at a Cabinet meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday ordered a sweeping review of national cybersecurity systems following a series of hacking incidents targeting financial institutions and public institutions, directing authorities to "promptly inspect the security framework across all core national systems and immediately implement necessary security measures."

Speaking at the 43rd Cabinet meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae, Lee said personal data breaches at financial and public institutions had been occurring in rapid succession, adding that signs of AI being used in some of the attacks had heightened public concern and anxiety. He said the growing use of AI in hacking made it urgent to strengthen security capabilities proactively.

"AI has now made it possible for people without any special skills to carry out hacking with ease," Lee said, calling on relevant authorities to "quickly and clearly determine the circumstances of each incident and swiftly deploy the necessary personnel and resources to minimize damage."

Lee said a reactive, after-the-fact approach to cybersecurity was no longer adequate against an ever-evolving threat landscape. "We must build the security capabilities to detect attacks in advance and proactively block them," he said.

He went on to say that he hoped authorities would "accelerate the development and deployment of AI technologies specialized in cybersecurity."

Lee also addressed the national audit, which began Tuesday, urging the government to take an actively receptive stance toward legislative scrutiny.

"The national audit is a meaningful occasion in which the National Assembly — the hall of the people's will — oversees the overall running of the country on behalf of its sovereign citizens," Lee said. "The government needs to humbly and gratefully accept reasonable concerns raised by the Assembly and translate them into genuine institutional improvements and administrative changes."

Turning to the Assembly itself, Lee urged lawmakers to use "the precious authority granted by the sovereign people not for factional interests, but for the people and the nation." He said he would be grateful if they would "refrain from groundless fake news and wasteful political attacks, and instead meet public expectations through productive criticism and responsible alternatives."


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