Seoul, April 10 – South Korea's media watchdog approved regulations on Friday that require bulk phone text messaging service providers to implement safeguards against illegal spamming as a condition for maintaining their certification.
The Korea Media and Communications Commission (KMCC) announced this after holding its first regular meeting since its launch in October 2025, as part of the government's efforts to curb illegal messaging activities, according to Yonhap news agency.
Specifically, messaging service providers must meet 16 criteria, including banned-word filtering systems and measures to prevent unlawful use, to qualify for bulk transmissions.
The government will cancel certifications if messages linked to illegal activities, including drugs, gambling, and illegal lending, are detected. Certified providers will undergo an annual review to ensure continued compliance with the standards.
The proposed regulations are subject to review by the Ministry of Government Legislation and approval by the Cabinet.
"This policy will strengthen the government's oversight of distributors. We will continue efforts to prevent public inconvenience caused by illegal spam," said KMCC Chairperson Kim Jong-cheol in a statement.
In March, the Cabinet approved a revised communication law to impose fines of up to 6 percent of relevant sales on illegal spam senders, as well as on mobile carriers that fail to properly prevent them.
The revision came amid criticism that the previous regulation only imposed fines of up to 30 million won (US$20,200) on spam senders, raising concerns that the level of punishment was too low compared with the gains from such illegal activities.
Earlier this month, the media watchdog chief called on Google to pursue shared growth in South Korea's application ecosystem as the U.S. tech giant moves to revamp its commission policy for its app market.
Kim Jong-cheol met with Wilson White, vice president of global affairs at Google, in Gwacheon, just south of Seoul, to discuss areas of cooperation ahead of the implementation of the new commission policy, the watchdog said.
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