Supreme Court Rules: Viewing CCTV Footage Can Be Considered Receiving Personal Information

The Supreme Court has made a landmark ruling that simply viewing someone else’s CCTV footage without receiving it as a file can be considered as providing personal information and is punishable.

Last month, the Second Division of the Supreme Court overturned the original trial verdict that acquitted former Gangwon-do lawmaker Lee Ki-chan, who was indicted on charges of violating the Personal Information Protection Act, and sent the case back to the Supreme Court’s Chuncheon District Court.

In February 2019, former MP Lee was indicted on charges of receiving data containing personal information for fraudulent purposes by viewing CCTV footage through a funeral home employee and filming it with a mobile phone to find out whether a specific person had reported 112.

The Personal Information Protection Act prohibits receiving personal information for commercial or fraudulent purposes without authorization.

The first trial found him guilty of the charge and sentenced him to a fine of 1 million won, but the second trial court found him not guilty on the grounds that merely viewing cannot be considered an act of “providing,” which is prohibited under the Personal Data Protection Act.

However, the Supreme Court’s judgment was different. The Supreme Court stated that in the case of ‘personal information in the form of a video’ relating to the portrait, body shape, location information, etc. of the photographed individual, the rights of control and management are transferred by obtaining information about the individual who can be identified and identified by looking at him.

The court emphasized that even in this case, the person can be considered a ‘person who has received personal information’ under the Personal Data Protection Act.

The idea is that simply viewing CCTV footage can be considered an act of reception, regardless of whether it was filmed or not. The Supreme Court stated that the employee played the video for the defendant to view, and the defendant did view it, which was an act of providing personal information under the Personal Information Protection Act.

Key Takeaways:

• Viewing CCTV footage can be considered receiving personal information.
• The Personal Information Protection Act prohibits receiving personal information for commercial or fraudulent purposes without authorization.
• The Supreme Court’s ruling emphasizes the importance of protecting personal information and the need for individuals and organizations to handle it responsibly.