Key facts
- South Korea's presidential office convened an emergency meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 3 over a data leak involving President Lee Jae Myung and his entourage.
- Lim called it a serious incident that cannot be overlooked and stressed the importance of investigating the breach's scope and related damage.
- Lim told relevant agencies to examine the security management setup for presidential overseas tours and create effective countermeasures, Cheong Wa Dae said.
- The foreign ministry is investigating the incident alongside relevant agencies and taking action to prevent further damage.
Yonhap News Agency reported that 168 people had their personal information exposed in a data leak involving President Lee Jae Myung and his June overseas trip entourage. The agency said the leaked file contained personal details of the presidential entourage and was uploaded to a publicly accessible website in June. South Korea’s presidential office convened an emergency meeting on Nov. 3 over the leak, and presidential chief of staff Lim Kwang-hyun presided over it after reports that the file was uploaded to a public website in June.
Lim called the leak a “serious incident” that cannot be overlooked and stressed the importance of investigating the breach’s scope and related damage. He said an investigation should also determine who was responsible. Lim told relevant agencies to examine the security management setup for presidential overseas tours and create effective countermeasures. Cheong Wa Dae said the chief of staff gave this direction.
Journalists, government ministers and presidential officials were among those whose information was exposed, along with the first lady, National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac and Kim Yong-beom, then the presidential policy chief. According to reports, the exposed personal data covered dates of birth and passport numbers.
The foreign ministry took the leaked information off the website and is looking for more exposure. The foreign ministry is investigating the incident alongside relevant agencies and taking action to prevent further damage. Authorities are arranging replacement passports for everyone affected, including Lee and the first lady. The foreign ministry promised on Nov. 3, 2026 to adopt measures aimed at stopping similar incidents from happening again.
Park Doo-soon spoke to reporters at a press briefing on Nov. 3, 2026. He described technical checks of computers and e-mail accounts tied to the president’s June overseas trip and confirmed that the leaked data had been removed from the website.
Park said officials were treating the case as a data leak, not a hacking incident. He said documents connected to presidential overseas trips are handled as classified documents. Park said, “We have also taken measures to prevent further damage.”
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