South Korea's Lee Cites Binance Hack, Orders Review of Government-Wide Cybersecurity Body

President Lee Jae-myung ordered stronger national cybersecurity defenses in the wake of the Binance hack.

At a Cabinet meeting on November 3, Lee said a string of major hacking incidents at home and abroad had highlighted the need for a government-wide organization to coordinate security functions now split across the public and private sectors.

He specifically cited the large-scale theft at Binance, the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange, saying cyberattacks pose rising risks to the economy and national security. On October 29, about $6.3 billion worth of digital assets was withdrawn without authorization from Binance, and U.S. investigators have identified a North Korea-linked hacking group as being behind the attack.

Lee said advances in artificial intelligence are making hacking methods more sophisticated, making it harder to prevent damage through conventional security inspections and responses after an incident occurs. He stressed the need for a prevention-focused response system that can detect signs of an attack early and quickly share them with relevant agencies.

He also called for tighter protection of critical national infrastructure. That includes checking vulnerabilities in public services that directly affect daily life, including finance, energy, and information and communications, and comprehensively overhauling existing security systems so they can respond to new attack methods.

Lee in particular ordered an active review of a so-called "cybersecurity czar" body to oversee cybersecurity work now divided by ministry. The plan is to build a government-wide cooperation framework that covers not only public institutions but also the private sector to strengthen the country's response to cyber threats.

Lee said South Korea must raise its cybersecurity capabilities to a world-class level, alongside advances in semiconductors and artificial intelligence, if it is to secure competitiveness in the digital sector. He added that technical responses, institutional improvements, and broader changes in public awareness of security must move forward together.