Police Push for Regular Status Checks on Crime Victims' Smartwatches

In the wake of a murder and abduction case in Songpa-gu, Seoul, where a man killed his mother-in-law and kidnapped his wife, police are pushing to introduce regular checks on the operational status of smartwatches provided to crime victims.

The Korean National Police Agency announced today (October 13) that it is reviewing plans to incorporate computerized checks for smartwatches and notification procedures for officers in charge into the "Victim Protection Manual."

Currently, victim support officers provide smartwatches to victims, while investigating officers in charge of safety measures contact victims once a week to verify whether the devices are being used.

However, in the recent Songpa case, it was found that the smartwatch given to the wife, who was a victim, was discharged at the time of the crime and thus could not be used for an emergency call.

Accordingly, the National Police Agency is considering a system where victim support officers periodically check the operational status of the devices via computer and notify the safety measure officers if a device remains turned off for an extended period.

Under this plan, the notified safety measure officer would then contact the victim directly to check their status and whether they are using the device.

While a computerized system to check device status already existed, it had been used primarily for device management purposes.

The National Police Agency plans to revise the victim protection manual to include these procedures as early as this month.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.