Police unit accidentally adds outsider to group chat, exposing personal data and internal files

A police district unit in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, accidentally invited an outsider into an online group chat, exposing officers' personal information and internal documents.

According to Yonhap, on Sept. 23 a KakaoTalk group chat operated by a district unit under the Bucheon Sosa Police Station received messages containing an organizational chart listing officers' names, ranks and contact numbers, along with work-related materials.

Sharing an updated organizational chart when personnel transfers occur had been standard practice, but the problem arose when an outsider, identified only as A, was mistakenly added to the chat instead of the incoming officer.

A wrong phone number had been entered for the transferring officer during administrative processing, causing A — the actual user of that number — to be inadvertently invited. A is believed to have viewed internal messages tied to the documents as well.

The group chat had no designated administrator, making it impossible to forcibly remove A or delete existing posts, leaving A with continued access to the internal materials.

The district unit attempted to contact A but was unable to reach them, and ultimately created a new group chat.

The incident drew attention to a broader vulnerability: civilian messaging apps such as KakaoTalk are widely used within police organizations for convenience, but their group chats are difficult to manage and control, raising concerns about information security.

"Personnel transfer details and duty-roster materials are shared in group chats quite often, but civilian messengers have clear limitations when it comes to maintaining security and control," an official who requested anonymity said.

A police official said the force would take steps to ensure frontline staff exercise greater caution when handling sensitive materials and would work to prevent any further leaks.