▲ Serious Crime Investigation Agency
The police, who classified a financial institution hacking case as a major crime and notified the Serious Crime Investigation Agency (SCIA), will continue to lead the investigation following the SCIA's decision not to initiate its own probe.
The Seoul Serious Crime Investigation Agency announced today (October 23) that it notified the police it would not request the transfer of the financial institution hacking case.
The Seoul SCIA explained that it reached this decision after reviewing the details of the case and the progress of the investigation, which it received from the police on October 21.
The SCIA noted that several factors were taken into consideration: the police had already launched the investigation before the opening of the SCIA, the probe was already significantly underway, and international cooperation with relevant overseas agencies was currently in progress.
The Enforcement Decree of the Serious Crime Investigation Act stipulates that when the SCIA is notified of the detection of a major crime by another investigative agency, it must determine whether it is appropriate to take over the investigation by considering the severity of the case, as well as the progress and duration of the existing investigation.
An official from the SCIA stated, "We judged that it is appropriate for the police to continue the investigation," adding, "We will actively cooperate with the police to respond sternly to cyber terror crimes, including financial institution hacking cases, moving forward."
The National Office of Investigation under the Korean National Police Agency also stated that it received the SCIA's decision not to initiate an investigation at 3:04 p.m. today.
The financial institution hacking case involves a series of artificial intelligence (AI) hacking breaches that recently targeted financial companies, including Shinhan, KB Kookmin, and Hana Bank.
Cybercrimes subject to notification to the SCIA include "violations of the Information and Communications Network Act due to hacking against national core infrastructure" and "violations of the Electronic Financial Transactions Act due to hacking against electronic financial infrastructure."
Previously, the police determined that the systems of the hacked financial institutions did not fall under national core infrastructure, but considering that an interpretation by financial authorities was necessary to determine if they constitute electronic financial infrastructure, the police requested an official legal interpretation from the Financial Services Commission (FSC).
The FSC replied to the National Office of Investigation with an interpretation indicating that the systems in question are likely to qualify as electronic financial infrastructure under the Electronic Financial Transactions Act.
Consequently, the police classified the hacking case as a "major crime" and notified the SCIA on October 21, but will now continue their investigation following the SCIA's decision not to take over the case.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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