ACT ON PROMOTION OF THE DIGITALIZATION OF THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROCESS
Act No. 9942, Jan. 25, 2010
Amended by Act No. 12844, Nov. 19, 2014
Act No. 14839, Jul. 26, 2017
Act No. 18653, Dec. 28, 2021
The purpose of this Act is to achieve promptness, fairness and transparency in a criminal justice procedure by promoting the digitalization of the criminal justice procedure and to contribute to the extension of citizens' rights and interests by improving services to citizens in the area of criminal justice.
The terms used in this Act are defined as follows: <Amended on Mar. 18, 2014; Nov. 19, 2014; Jul. 26, 2017; Dec. 28, 2021>
| 1. | The term "criminal justice affairs" means affairs relating to the disposition of criminal cases, including investigation, prosecution, trial, and the execution of judgments; |
| 2. | The term "criminal justice agency" means any of the courts, the Ministry of Justice, Prosecutors' Offices, the Korean National Police Agency, the Korea Coast Guard, the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials, or the organs affiliated therewith, or other agencies prescribed by Presidential Decree as dealing with criminal justice affairs; |
| 3. | The term "criminal justice information" means any information that is generated, acquired, or managed by a criminal justice agency through a criminal justice information system in relation to the conduct of criminal justice affairs, and that is expressed in the form of codes, letters, voice, sound, images, etc. by means of electronic processing; |
| 4. | The term "criminal justice information system" means an electronic management system built on combining hardware, software, databases, networks, security components, etc. for the use by a criminal justice agency to generate, acquire, store, transmit, or receive criminal justice information; |
| 5. | The term "common criminal justice information system" means a system for joint use, by two or more criminal justice agencies, of the criminal justice information systems (hereinafter referred to as "systems"); |
| 6. | The term "criminal justice portal" means a criminal justice related service portal built on the basis of the common criminal justice information system (hereinafter referred to as "common system") to ensure easy and swift access of citizens to criminal justice information. |
| Article 3 (Promotion of Digitalization of Criminal Justice Process) |
| (1) | The criminal justice agencies shall endeavor to make institutional improvements necessary to digitalize the criminal justice process and to develop the systems to reflect the improvements. |
| (2) | The criminal justice agencies shall observe the distribution standards of the systems to digitalize the criminal justice process and work in mutual cooperation to ensure the stable operation of the systems. |
| Article 4 (Plans for Digitalization of Criminal Justice Process) |
| 1. | Basic direction-setting for implementing the digitalization of criminal justice affairs; |
| 2. | Matters relating to organs and structure to implement the digitalization of criminal justice affairs; |
| 3. | Matters relating to the selection, development, etc. of documents, etc. subject to digitalization; |
| 4. | Matters relating to the scope of criminal justice information placed in common use; |
| 5. | Matters relating to the improvement of relevant statutes and statutory systems following the digitalization of criminal justice affairs; |
| 6. | Matters relating to the guarantee of fundamental rights, including the disclosure of information, and measures for the protection of information, in digitalized criminal justice process; |
| 7. | Other necessary matters regarding the promotion of digitalization of criminal justice affairs. |
| Article 5 (Duty to Cooperate for Stable Operation of Systems) |
| (1) | The criminal justice agencies shall store and keep decisions, indictments, warrants, records, and other documents concerning criminal justice affairs by using the systems: Provided, That when it is difficult to use the systems in the nature of the affairs, exceptions may be provided by Presidential Decree for the affairs of the Ministry of Justice, Prosecutors' Offices, the Korean National Police Agency, the Korea Coast Guard, and the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials; and by the Supreme Court Regulations for the affairs of courts. <Amended on Mar. 18, 2014; Nov. 19, 2014; Jul. 26, 2017; Dec. 28, 2021> |
| (2) | The criminal justice agencies shall observe the distribution standards for criminal justice information provided by the systems when preparing or utilizing documents under paragraph (1). |
| (3) | The criminal justice agencies shall ensure the accuracy of criminal justice information when generating or distributing the criminal justice information. |
| Article 6 (Duty to Cooperate in Joint Use of Information) |
| (1) | The criminal justice agencies shall endeavor to ensure the joint utilization and swift distribution of criminal justice information through the systems. |
| (2) | Any of the criminal justice agencies may provide another criminal justice agency through the systems with the criminal justice information determined by the Criminal Justice Information System Council under Article 9 if necessary to conduct criminal justice affairs in a more swift and accurate way. |
| (3) | No criminal justice agency may gather, store, or use criminal justice information for purposes other than for handling criminal justice affairs. |
| Article 7 (Portal Services to Citizens) |
The criminal justice agencies shall provide comprehensive services related to criminal justice through the criminal justice portal so as to ensure easy and swift access of citizens to criminal justice information.
| Article 8 (System Operating Entity) |
| (1) | The operation and management of the systems shall be conducted by individual criminal justice agencies using the systems: Provided, That the common system connecting and supporting both the criminal justice portal and systems operated and managed by individual criminal justice agencies shall be operated and managed by an operating organ established within the Ministry of Justice. |
| (2) | Necessary matters regarding the organization, operation, etc. of the operating organ under paragraph (1) shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree. |
| (3) | Each criminal justice agency may entrust part of support affairs, including the maintenance and repair of its system, to another state agency or a legal entity supporting informatization if deemed necessary to ensure the stable operation and management of its system. |
| Article 9 (Criminal Justice Information System Council) |
The Criminal Justice Information System Council (hereinafter referred to as the "Council") shall be organized to consult on and coordinate the matters relating to the alteration, development, and improvement that may affect the distribution standards of the systems, the improvement of the criminal justice process through digitalization, etc.
| Article 10 (Organization of the Council) |
| (1) | The Council shall be comprised of the Vice Minister of Justice; the Vice Minister of the National Court Administration; the Deputy Prosecutor General of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office; the Deputy Commissioner General of the Korean National Police Agency; the Deputy Commissioner General of the Korea Coast Guard; and the Deputy Director-General of the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials. <Amended on Mar. 18, 2014; Nov. 19, 2014; Jul. 26, 2017; Dec. 28, 2021> |
| (2) | The chairperson of the Council shall be elected by and from among the council members. |
| Article 11 (Meetings of the Council) |
| (1) | Regular meetings of the Council shall be held semi-yearly. |
| (2) | For any matters requiring consultation by the Council, each member may ask the chairperson to hold an extraordinary meeting. |
| (3) | Consultation and coordination of the Council shall be subject to an agreement on the total members thereof. |
| (4) | The Council shall hear opinions of the Korean Bar Association with respect to the matters related to the affairs of the Korean Bar Association among those provided for in subparagraphs of Article 12 (1). |
| (5) | Except as provided in paragraphs (1) through (4), necessary matters regarding the operation, etc. of the Council shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree. |
| Article 12 (Functions of the Council) |
| (1) | The Council shall consult on and coordinate the following matters: |
| 1. | Matters relating to the improvement of the criminal justice process through the digitalization of criminal justice affairs; |
| 2. | Matters relating to the distribution standards for criminal justice information and the modification thereof; |
| 3. | Matters relating to the joint utilization and modification of criminal justice information between criminal justice agencies through the systems; |
| 4. | Matters relating to the contents and operation of the criminal justice portal, including the disclosure, etc. of criminal justice information through the common system; |
| 5. | Matters relating to the contents, scope, modification, operation, and management of the common system; |
| 6. | Matters relating to the protection of criminal justice information jointly utilized by criminal justice agencies; |
| 7. | Matters relating to the modification, development, and improvement of the systems which may affect the distribution standards for criminal justice information. |
| (2) | The Council shall be operated in such a way as to ensure that the independence of individual criminal justice agencies is respected in the operation of their own systems. |
| Article 13 (Working Council) |
| (1) | A Working Council for Criminal Justice Information System (hereinafter referred to as the "Working Council") shall be established within the Council to efficiently assist the Council in its affairs. |
| (2) | The Working Council shall conduct a prior examination and coordination of the matters to be referred to the Council for deliberation and deal with matters delegated by the Council. |
| (3) | The Working Council shall be comprised of those nominated by each member of the Council. |
| (4) | Except as provided in paragraphs (1) through (3), necessary matters regarding the operation, etc. of the Working Council shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree. |
| Article 14 (Protection of Criminal Justice Information and Prohibition of Leakage Thereof) |
| (1) | A criminal justice agency shall take necessary measures to ensure the security of criminal justice information so that the information might not be lost, stolen, leaked, altered, or corrupted in dealing with criminal justice affairs. |
| (2) | A person who is engaged in criminal justice affairs or in system support affairs upon entrustment under Article 8 (3) may not inspect, reproduce, or transmit without authority any criminal justice information managed by another agency or person. |
| (3) | A person who is being or has been engaged in criminal justice affairs or in system support affairs upon entrustment under Article 8 (3) may not divulge, process without authority, provide for another's use, or otherwise use for an unjust purpose, any criminal justice information learned in the course of performing his or her duties. |
| Article 15 (Penalty Provisions) |
| (1) | A person who forges, alters, or eliminates any criminal justice information with intent to interfere with the affairs of a criminal justice agency shall be punishable by imprisonment with labor for not more than 10 years. |
| (2) | A person who divulges, processes without authority, provides for another's use, or otherwise uses for an unjust purpose, any criminal justice information, in violation of Article 14 (3), shall be punishable by imprisonment with labor for not more than five years or by a fine not exceeding 50 million won. |
| (3) | A person who inspects, reproduces, or transmits any criminal justice information managed by another agency or person, without authority, in violation of Article 14 (2), shall be punishable by imprisonment with labor for not more than three years or by a fine not exceeding 30 million won. |
| Article 16 (Legal Fiction as Public Officials for Purposes of Penalty Provisions) |
| Article 17 (Provisions Governing Delegation) |
Among the matters necessary to enforce this Act, such as the maintenance of the accuracy of criminal justice information, those related to the Ministry of Justice, Prosecutors' Offices, the Korean National Police Agency, the Korea Coast Guard, and the Corruption Investigation Office for High-Ranking Officials shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree; and those related to courts, by the Supreme Court Regulations. <Amended on Mar. 18, 2014; Nov. 19, 2014; Jul. 26, 2017; Dec. 28, 2021>
ADDENDUM <Act No. 9942, Jan. 25, 2010>
This Act shall enter into force on May 1, 2010.
ADDENDUM <Act No. 12424, Mar. 18, 2014>
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation.
ADDENDA <Act No. 12844, Nov. 19, 2014>
Article 1 (Enforcement Date)
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation: Provided, That the amended provisions of the statutes, which were promulgated before this Act enters into force but whose enforcement dates have not yet arrived, from among the statutes amended by Article 6 of the Addenda, shall enter into force on their respective enforcement dates. Articles 2 through 7 Omitted.
ADDENDA <Act No. 14839, Jul. 26, 2017>
Article 1 (Enforcement Date)
| (1) | This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation: Provided, That the amended provisions of the statutes, which were promulgated before this Act enters into force but whose enforcement dates have not yet arrived, from among the statutes amended by Article 5 of the Addenda, shall enter into force on their respective enforcement dates. |
Articles 2 through 6 Omitted.
ADDENDA <Act No. 18653, Dec. 28, 2021>
Article 1 (Enforcement Date)
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation.
Article 2 (Transitional Measures concerning Organization and Operation of Council and Working Council)
Notwithstanding the amended provisions of Article 10 (1), the previous provisions shall apply to the organization and operation of the Council and the Working Council pursuant to the previous provisions as at the time this Act enters into force.