When it comes to background checks in South Korea, Global Background Screening is your go-to solution. We offer a wide range of services tailored to meet your individual and corporate needs, ensuring that you have all the necessary information to make informed decisions. In this article, we will delve into our comprehensive background screening process in South Korea and provide insights into our offerings.
South Korea Criminal Search and Adverse Media
Global Background Screening conducts a thorough criminal search for illicit activities and adverse media background check in South Korea.
Our extensive search includes the following sources:
9 major newspapers, such as Kyunghyang Newspaper and Hankiik Ilbo
25 regional newspapers, including Kangwon Ilbo
6 economics specialized newspapers, like Maeil economics
3 TV broadcast companies: KBS (Korean Broadcasting System), MBS, SBS
9 Internet newspapers, such as Labor Today and Oh My News
2 English newspapers: Korea Time, Korea Herald
5 regional weekly newspapers, like Kimpo News and Okc
Full internet search, including blogs, social networking, business rumors/discussions, etc.
Sex Offender Register maintained by the Ministry of Justice
Case Law Files
Required Information for South Korea Background Checks
To perform a background check, Global Background Screening requires the following information from your applicant, retrieved through our electronic authorization forms:
Full Name (Name in Hangul required for Korean Nationals)
Date of Birth
7-year country address
General Release Form
No Korean National ID Number needed
Additional South Korea Background Check Services
Apart from criminal background checks, Global Background Screening offers a wide range of services for individuals and corporations in South Korea, including:
Civil search for suits, liens, or judgments: This search is based on a candidate's name and residential address and identifies any legal proceedings, liens, or judgments against an individual.
Bankruptcy search: This search is conducted through the district court and provides information on personal bankruptcy cases in cities such as Seoul, Incheon, Pusan, Jeju Island, Daejeon, and Daegu. Information is sourced daily from the various district courts responsible for the geographical areas covered.
Directorship search: This search is conducted through Bizsiret to uncover any current or past directorships and shareholdings. This service is supplemented with open-source media and proprietary business databases.
Motor Vehicle Report (MVR): This search is conducted to validate the authenticity of an individual's driver's license through the Road Traffic Authority. This search will only authenticate the candidate's driver's license and will not provide driving record details.
Employment and education verifications: These searches verify the accuracy of the candidate's employment and education history.
Social media searches: These searches analyze a candidate's online presence across various social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Reddit, TikTok), providing insights into their behavior and character.
ID Check: This search is conducted through the Ministry of Public Administration and Security to verify the authenticity of a candidate's South Korea ID.
Corporate Services in South Korea
For corporations, Global Background Screening offers additional services:
Corporate Bankruptcy: A bankruptcy check conducted through the district court that provides information relating to corporate bankruptcy cases in Seoul, Incheon, Pusan, Jeju Island, Daejeon, and Daegu. Information is sourced daily from the various district courts responsible for the geographical areas covered.
Corporate Civil Search: A company civil search through the Korean civil courts.
South Korea Data Protection and Compliance
In the past, South Korea did not have a comprehensive law governing data privacy.
According to DLA Piper, a global law firm with lawyers located in more than 40 countries, South Korea's legislative system for personal information protection is comprised of the Personal Information Protection Act (“PIPA” enacted and became effective Sep 30,2011), a general, comprehensive statute, and the Credit Information Use and Protection Act, which regulates personal credit information.
The Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection, etc. (“Network Act”) once functioned as a special statute regulating the processing of users’ personal information by online service providers. However, after the substantial amendments to the PIPA and the Network Act on January 9, 2020, all provisions related to the processing and protection of personal information applicable to online service providers under the Network Act were either removed or consolidated into the amended PIPA. The amendments to the PIPA and the Network Act went into effect on August 5, 2020, and now the processing of personal information while providing online services is subject to the PIPA under a separate section exclusively dedicated to regulating online service providers (“Special Section”) further explained below.
Note that other parts of the PIPA will also apply to "Online Service Providers" (defined as ‘telecommunications service providers’ as prescribed in Article 2, Item 8 of the Telecommunications Business Act and other persons who provide information or act as an intermediary for the provision of information for the purpose of earning profit, by utilizing the services rendered by telecommunications service providers) if the Special Section is silent on a given issue.
On December 5, 2022, the National Policy Committee of the National Assembly passed a bill (the “Proposed Amendment”) to amend the PIPA. This amendment is another step towards ensuring data protection and compliance in South Korea.
Global Background Screening is your trusted partner for comprehensive South Korea background checks. We offer a wide range of services for both individuals and corporations, ensuring that you have all the necessary information to make informed decisions. Contact us today to get started with our background screening services in South Korea.
