MILITARY SECRET PROTECTION ACT
Wholly Amended by Act No. 4616, Dec. 27, 1993
Amended by Act No. 7613, Jul. 22, 2005
Act No. 10792, jun. 9, 2011
Act No. 12400, Mar. 11, 2014
Act No. 12556, May 9, 2014
Act No. 13239, Mar. 27, 2015
Act No. 13503, Sep. 1, 2015
Act No. 19076, Dec. 13, 2022
The purpose of this Act is to contribute to national security by protecting military secrets.
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
The terms used in this Act are defined as follows:
| 1. | “Military secret" means a special media record or object, such as a military-related document, picture, electronic record that is not made known to the general public and, if leaked, could cause clear damage to the national security, and is thus indicated or notified as military secrets or properly protected as such; |
| 2. | "Disclosure of military secrets" means publicly announcing the military secrets after determining to disclose military secrets in accordance with due process of law, to the general public not authorized to handle military secrets, through a public statement, the press, an assembly, etc.; |
| 3. | "Provision or explanation of military secrets" means delivering (including sending by electronic means) military secrets, allowing to view military secrets, or verbally delivering details of military secrets to a requester or others in accordance with due process of law, when requested to provide or explain military secrets pursuant to Article 8. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 1, 2015]
| Article 3 (Classification of Military Secrets) |
| (1) | Military secrets shall be classified as Top Secret, Secret, and Confidential depending upon the degree of impact on the national security in case they are leaked. |
| (2) | Detailed criteria for the classification of military secrets as stipulated in paragraph (1) shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 4 (Principles and Authority of Designating Military Secrets) |
| (1) | Military secrets shall be classified into the lowest grade possible whereby they are protected properly considering their content and value. |
| (2) | A person authorized to classify military secrets in each degree shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 5 (Protective Measures for Military Secrets) |
| (1) | Persons who handle military secrets shall indicate or notify military secrets designated under Article 4 as military secrets: Provided, That in cases where indication or notification as such is either impossible or inappropriate, measures shall be taken to protect military secrets, such as barring access to the military secrets or concealing the place they are located. |
| (2) | The head of a unit or an organ that manages or handles military secrets may designate military protection areas in order to protect military secrets. |
| (3) | Matters necessary for the management, handling, indication, and notification of military secrets, other protective measures of military secrets, and the designation of military protection areas shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 6 (Declassification of Military Secrets) |
Persons who have designated military secrets shall cancel the designation without delay if it is no longer necessary to protect them as military secrets.
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 7 (Disclosure of Military Secrets) |
The Minister of National Defense or the Minister of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration may disclose military secrets as prescribed by Presidential Decree in the following cases:
| 1. | Where a need arises to inform the general public; |
| 2. | Where it is deemed that the disclosure will bring clear benefit to the national security. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 8 (Provision or Explanation of Military Secrets) |
The Minister of National Defense or the Minister of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration may provide or explain military secrets as prescribed by Presidential Decree in the following cases:
| 1. | Where requested to provide or explain military secrets under Acts; |
| 2. | Where a need arises for military diplomacy; |
| 3. | Where requested by a foreign country or an international organization pursuant to a treaty or an international agreement on military affairs; |
| 4. | Where requested by research institutes or others for the purposes of technological development and academic research, etc. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 9 (Request for Disclosure) |
| (1) | Any person who is a national of the Republic of Korea may request in writing the Minister of National Defense or the Minister of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration to disclose military secrets. |
| (2) | With respect to disclosure of military secrets at the request for disclosure under paragraph (1), Article 7 shall apply mutatis mutandis. |
| (3) | Matters necessary with respect to a request for disclosing military secrets and procedures of handling such request under paragraph (1) shall be prescribed by Presidential Decree. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 10 (Failure to Take Measures to Protect Military Secrets) |
| (1) | Any person who handles military secrets shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than two years, if he or she fails to provide any indication or notification or take other measures necessary to protect military secrets without due cause, as prescribed in Article 5 (1). |
| (2) | If any person handling military secrets destroys or conceals military secrets, or undermine their utility by any other means without due cause, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not less than one year. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 11 (Detection and Collection) |
Any person who detects or collects military secrets by means not in compliance with the due process of law shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than ten years.
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 11-2 (Possession of Military Secrets by Unauthorized Persons) |
Where a person who handled military secrets as part of his or her duties is in possession of the military secrets even after the authorization therefor is terminated, he or she shall be subject to imprisonment with labor for not more than two years or a fine not exceeding 20 million won.
[This Article Newly Inserted on Sep. 1, 2015]
| (1) | If any person who has detected or collected military secrets leaks them to others, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for a limited term of not less than one year. |
| (2) | If any person who has come to know or possess military secrets by chance leaks them to others despite knowledge that they are the military secrets, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than five years or by a fine not exceeding 50 million won. <Amended on May 9, 2014> |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 13 (Leakage of Military Secrets in Performance of Duties) |
| (1) | If any person who handles or has handled military secrets in the performance of duties leaks to others the military secrets he or she has come to know or possess in performing such duties, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for a limited term of not less than three years. |
| (2) | If any person other than those provided for in paragraph (1) leaks to others the military secrets he or she has come to know or possess in the performance of duties, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than seven years. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 13-2 (Aggravated Punishment for Illegal Trading of Military Secrets) |
| (1) | Where a person who commits any crime referred to in Articles 11 through 13 receives, demands, promises, or offers money, valuables or other benefits, he or she shall be given aggravated punishment by up to one half the sentence corresponding to the relevant crime. |
| (2) | Deleted. <Mar. 27, 2015> |
[This Article Newly Inserted on Mar. 11, 2014]
[Title Amended on Mar. 27, 2015]
| Article 14 (Leak of Military Secrets by Negligence) |
Any person who commits a crime under Article 13 (1) by negligence shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than two years or by a fine not exceeding 20 million won. <Amended on May 9, 2014> [This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 15 (Aggravated Punishment for Crimes Committed for Foreign Countries or Foreigners) |
Any person who commits a crime under Articles 11 through 13 for a foreign country or a foreigner (including a foreign organization) shall be imposed aggravated punishment by up to one half the sentence corresponding to the relevant crime. <Amended on Mar. 11, 2014> [This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
[Title Amended on Mar. 11, 2014]
| Article 16 (Failure to Report, Submit, or Delete) |
| (1) | If a person keeping military secrets loses or has military secrets stolen but fails to report such fact to the head of the organization he or she belongs to or its supervisory organization without delay, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than three years or by a fine not exceeding 30 million won. <Amended on May 9, 2014> |
| (2) | If any person who has acquired military secrets or possesses military secrets provided by others does not immediately submit them upon request by an investigating agency or a military unit, he or she shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than two years or by a fine not exceeding 20 million won. <Amended on May 9, 2014> |
| (3) | Where the military secrets subject to confiscation are submitted by printing out or copying as prescribed by Article 106 (3) or Article 219 of the Criminal Procedure Act, the person possessing such military secrets shall be subject to imprisonment with labor for not more than two years or a fine not exceeding 20 million won if he or she fails to delete military secrets immediately after receiving orders from a prosecutor (including military prosecutors) or a judicial police officer directed by such prosecutor to delete military secrets remaining in computer disks or other similar data storage media. <Newly Inserted on Sep. 1, 2015; Dec. 13, 2022> |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
[Title Amended on Sep. 1, 2015]
| Article 17 (Intrusion into Military Protection Area) |
| (1) | Any person who intrudes a military protection area shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than two years or by a fine not exceeding 20 million won. <Amended on May 9, 2014> |
| (2) | Any person who intrudes a military protection area and steals, destroys, conceals military secrets or undermines their utility by any other means shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for a limited term of not less than one year. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 18 (Criminal Attempt) |
Any person who attempts to commit a crime referred to in Articles 11 through 13 and Articles 15 and 17 shall be punished. [This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 19 (Mitigation and Remission for Voluntary Surrender) |
If any person who has committed a crime prescribed in this Act voluntarily surrender him or herself to the police, his or her sentence shall be commuted or pardoned.
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 20 (Suspension of Qualifications) |
Where an imprisonment with labor is sentenced for a crime prescribed in this Act, suspension of qualifications for not more than the maximum term of the imprisonment with labor may be imposed concurrently with the sentence.
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 20-2 (Confiscation and Additional Collection) |
| (1) | Property or profits acquired by a person who has committed a crime defined in this Act or by a third person with the knowledge of such fact shall be confiscated: Provided, That where confiscation is impracticable, the equivalent value thereof shall be collected. |
| (2) | Where a person who has committed a crime defined in this Act is not prosecuted, a prosecutor or a military prosecutor may give an order that parts of confiscated articles that constitute military secrets be deleted or discarded, or reverted to the National Treasury. <Amended on Dec. 13, 2022> |
[This Article Newly Inserted on Mar. 27, 2015]
| Article 21 (Application to Secrets Provided by United Nations Forces and Foreign Countries) |
This Act shall also apply to military secrets of the United Nations forces stationed in the Republic of Korea, military secrets of foreign troops carrying out joint operations with the national armed forces, and other secrets, which constitute a military secrets, provided by foreign countries under military treaties or other international agreements, etc.
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
| Article 22 (Prosecutor’s Command of Investigation) |
| (2) | Persons carrying out duties as judicial police officers pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be put under the command of a prosecutor and shall obey orders of the prosecutor given in performing duties, prior to investigating a crime committed by a suspect not subject to the Military Criminal Act (hereinafter referred to as the "suspect"): Provided, That in cases where the suspect is a flagrant offender or where they are not able to receive the prior command of a prosecutor in an emergency situation, they shall be put under his or her ex post facto command without delay. |
| (3) | Where deemed necessary to investigate as to whether a suspect has been illegally detained, the chief prosecutor of a district prosecutor’s office or the chief of a branch office of prosecutors shall order the prosecutor belonging to his or her office to inspect the suspect’s detention place in the military investigating agency located in an area under his or her jurisdiction, and the inspecting prosecutor may question the suspect in detail and examine the documents relating to the arrest. |
| (4) | Where there is a good reason to believe that the suspect has been illegally detained, the prosecutor shall order an immediate transmission of the case of the suspect to the prosecutors’ office. |
[This Article Wholly Amended on Jun. 9, 2011]
ADDENDA <Act No. 4616, Dec. 27, 1993>
Article 1 (Enforcement Date)
This Act shall enter into force three months after the date of its promulgation.
Article 2 (Transitional Measures concerning Designation of Military Secrets)
Military secrets at the time when this Act enters into force shall be deemed designated as military secrets by this Act.
Article 3 Omitted.
Article 4 (Relations to Other Acts)
Where the provisions in this Act correspond to the cases in other statutes that quote the provisions of the previous Military Secret Protection Act at the time of enforcement of this Act, the corresponding provisions of this Act shall be deemed as quoted in lieu of the previous provisions applicable.
ADDENDA <Act No. 7613, Jul. 22, 2005>
Article 1 (Enforcement Date)
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation: Provided, That … (Omitted.) … the provisions of Articles 2 through 4 of the Addenda shall enter into force on January 1, 2006. Articles 2 through 4 Omitted.
ADDENDUM <Act No. 10792, Jun. 9, 2011>
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation.
ADDENDUM <Act No. 12400, Mar. 11, 2014>
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation.
ADDENDUM <Act No. 12556, May 9, 2014>
This Act shall enter into force three months after the date of its promulgation.
ADDENDUM <Act No. 13239, Mar. 27, 2015>
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation.
ADDENDUM <Act No. 13503, Sep. 1, 2015>
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation.
ADDENDUM <Act No. 19076, Dec. 13, 2022>
This Act shall enter into force on the date of its promulgation.