Exclusive: Six years on, long-overdue fines at privacy watchdog top W500m

Long-overdue administrative fines managed by the Personal Information Protection Commission — those on which surcharges have been accruing for more than five years — have exceeded 500 million won, raising questions about the agency's ability to collect what it is owed.

The commission has been checking debtors' assets and pursuing compulsory collection measures including the seizure of vehicles and real estate, but lawmakers say a large share of the delinquent debt transferred to the agency when it was established in 2020 remains uncollected, undermining the effectiveness of its enforcement.

According to data the commission submitted to the office of People Power Party lawmaker Shin Dong-wook on Wednesday, a total of 41 fines with surcharge accrual periods exceeding 60 months remain unpaid over the past decade. The unpaid principal amounts to about 461 million won ($346,000), with surcharges of about 42 million won, bringing the total to 503 million won.

Of the 41 unpaid cases, 34 originated with the Korea Communications Commission and six with the Ministry of Interior and Safety, both of which transferred the delinquent debt to the Personal Information Protection Commission when it launched.

The commission was established in August 2020, taking over personal data protection duties — along with the associated delinquent debt — from the Korea Communications Commission and the Ministry of Interior and Safety. Those two agencies had previously levied fines for violations including failure to notify or report personal data breaches, inadequate security measures such as access controls and encryption, and breaches of obligations to restrict the processing of resident registration numbers and to destroy personal data.

Nearly six years have passed since the commission assumed collection responsibility, yet 40 of the long-overdue cases transferred at that time still remain unpaid. Fines outstanding beyond 60 months have reached the point at which additional surcharge accrual has ended, drawing criticism over the practical effectiveness of the agency's delinquency management.

Under the current Act on the Regulation of Violations of Public Order, a debtor who fails to pay a fine by the due date is charged a surcharge equal to 3 percent of the outstanding amount. If payment is still not made, an additional monthly surcharge of 1.2 percent applies, but this additional accrual is capped at 60 months. After five years, the obligation to pay the original fine and any surcharges already accrued remains, but no further surcharges are added.

The commission may issue payment demands, investigate debtors' assets, and pursue compulsory collection measures including seizure. According to the data obtained by Shin's office, the agency is currently seizing vehicles belonging to 12 debtors and real estate belonging to one debtor.

Collection of unpaid fines requires no separate court judgment and can proceed under the National Tax Collection Act. Critics argue that despite holding these collection powers, the commission has failed to enforce them effectively.

Meanwhile, fines levied since the commission's launch have also gone unpaid. Data provided to Shin's office show that over the past five years, unpaid principal on fines and penalty surcharges totals about 310 million won, with additional surcharges of about 14 million won.

The commission said it is cooperating with efforts to consolidate delinquent fine collection — currently handled separately by individual ministries — under the National Tax Service, a move aimed at improving the collection efficiency of non-tax government revenue.

Shin said the number of companies that leak personal data and then simply refuse to pay their fines is growing, yet the commission appears to lack the will to collect. "Fines must be imposed according to strict standards, and the current administrative system, which lacks a precise collection framework, needs to be reformed," he said.