South Korea to tighten regulations on false job advertisements

South Korea’s Ministry of Employment and Labor has announced proposed amendments to the Enforcement Decree and Enforcement Rules of the Employment Stability Act to combat false and exaggerated job advertisements. The measures, scheduled to take effect on December 10, aim to protect job seekers from recruitment fraud by establishing a dual prevention system involving pre-verification and rapid post-publication response.

Under the new regulations, online job portals and employment information providers must verify the accuracy of suspicious job postings before they are published. Verification targets include advertisements offering wages significantly higher than industry standards, those using deceptive language, or those from employers who have been flagged for false advertising within the last six months. If an advertisement is found to be false, providers may request corrections or suspend and delete the posting.

To prevent widespread damage, the Ministry of Employment and Labor will implement an emergency order system. This allows the Minister to issue verbal or telephonic orders to stop or delete advertisements immediately in urgent cases, followed by formal written documentation. Additionally, the amendment provides a legal basis for designating professional monitoring agencies and allows for the administrative cancellation of unregistered, defunct employment agencies. The government is also introducing a ‘guidance first, punishment later’ approach for minor violations, issuing warnings before imposing business suspensions.