SEOUL (AFP) - South Korea is investigating whether the passport data of President Lee Jae-myung and more than 160 other officials was leaked online, a minister said Tuesday.
Published on: 03/11/2026 - 08:11
Local media reported on Monday that a computer file containing personal details, including passport numbers and dates of birth of the president, the first lady, and senior officials accompanying Li on a trip abroad, was uploaded to a website in June.
It was reported that the file was uploaded to the VirusTotal malware scanning platform before Lee's visit to Europe, and remained accessible for about five months.
It is not yet clear who carried it or why.
The Foreign Ministry has since renewed the passports of all those affected, including Lee, while the data has been deleted from the website, ministry spokesman Park Do-sun told reporters on Tuesday.
He said, "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is currently working with the National Police Agency and other agencies to determine how the information was leaked."
He explained that the ministry is treating the incident as a data leak and not a cyberattack, and is examining the computers and email addresses that were used in preparing for the president’s trip.
Presidential Chief of Staff Lim Kwang-hyun told an emergency meeting to discuss the data breach that the leak was "a serious matter that should not be taken lightly," according to Lee's office.
He added that the incident required "an in-depth investigation to determine how the leak occurred, the amount of information that was revealed, and whether it caused any actual damage."
© 2026 AFP
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