South Korean health insurance officials caught in data breaches and misconduct

Employees at South Korea’s National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) and the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) have been caught engaging in various forms of misconduct, including unauthorized access to personal data and illegal external income activities.

According to disciplinary records submitted to the National Assembly by Representative Heo Jong-sik, NHIS staff members were found to have used their positions for private gain. One manager was dismissed for managing a family business during work hours and using professional knowledge to manipulate insurance premiums. Other employees were disciplined for promoting sponsored products on personal blogs and social media during work hours or leaking sensitive employee information on YouTube.

At HIRA, investigations revealed significant violations of secondary employment rules. One employee earned over 150 million won through a multi-level marketing scheme over a decade. Other instances included unauthorized translation work and receiving payments for pharmaceutical dispensing.

Furthermore, serious breaches of data privacy were identified. NHIS employees were found to have accessed personal information of family members, ex-partners, and real estate transaction counterparts without authorization. In one severe case, a HIRA employee was referred to the police for fraud after leaking colleague information to a moneylender. Representative Heo has called for a comprehensive review of internal control systems to protect sensitive public health and medical data.