Fire Outage Halts Non-Face-to-Face Account Setups

Disruptions in Financial Services Due to Fire at Daejeon Information Center

A fire at the Daejeon National Information Resources Management Service has significantly impacted financial institutions, leading to disruptions in various non-face-to-face services. These include account openings and loan applications, which rely heavily on digital identity verification processes. The incident has forced banks and asset management companies to implement alternative measures to maintain service continuity.

One of the primary challenges is the unavailability of resident registration cards, passports, and foreign resident ID cards for identity verification. These documents are typically used when customers open or extend accounts through mobile apps. However, the administrative system responsible for managing these certificates has been temporarily disabled due to the fire. As a result, financial institutions are advising customers to use driver’s licenses as an alternative form of identification. Initially, mobile resident registration cards were also problematic, but they have since become functional after the Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation restored its servers.

The impact extends beyond just identity verification. The government's 'My Public Data' service, which is used by banks for general credit loans, has also been affected. This has led to partial disruptions in loan processing. Additionally, tax payment services through mobile banking platforms are currently unavailable, further complicating financial transactions for customers.

Post Office services have also been severely impacted. All operations have come to a standstill, affecting money transfers to Post Office accounts from other financial institutions. Insurance premium payments and payouts for Post Office Insurance are similarly blocked, creating inconvenience for policyholders.

Public institution websites, including those of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), are also not functioning. To address the crisis, the FSC held an emergency meeting with major financial institutions on the 27th. The meeting, chaired by Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-young, focused on mitigating consumer damages. A second session was conducted later that day to discuss broader financial damage response strategies. In response to the severity of the situation, the FSC elevated the Joint Crisis Response Headquarters to the Central Accident Control Headquarters, aligning it with the 'serious' crisis alert level. According to a source from the FSC, efforts are underway to assess specific cases where citizens may face damages and to guide appropriate response measures.

Major financial institutions have activated their crisis response systems to manage the situation. Shinhan Financial convened a meeting led by the Chief Risk Officer (CRO), establishing a monitoring system across major group companies, including banks, credit card firms, securities, and savings banks. The company is closely monitoring all systems to ensure swift isolation and operation on backup systems in case of IT failures, preventing potential operational halts.

Similarly, KB Financial Group has formed a non-face-to-face emergency response team, conducting real-time monitoring of the response situation. These proactive steps highlight the industry's commitment to minimizing disruption and maintaining service reliability during this challenging time.