South Korea's President Calls for a Central Cybersecurity Authority

South Korea’s president called Tuesday for a centralized cybersecurity authority to protect public services and critical infrastructure, as security checks began at more than 2,100 public bodies.

At a Cabinet meeting, he said the current approach, centered on inspections and responses after incidents, had clear limits in protecting core systems. He called for a preventive framework and urged officials to consider a body that could coordinate security functions spread across government agencies.

He also called for discussion of a government task force spanning the public and private sectors. The proposed authority would oversee and coordinate those divided security responsibilities.

The president cited a multibillion-dollar theft affecting Binance but did not directly blame North Korea. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had attributed the attack to North Korea, which denied involvement.

South Korea’s intelligence agency has started urgent security checks covering more than 2,100 central government departments, local governments and public institutions.