South Korea to Ban iPhone Models in Military Buildings due to Security Concerns

South Korea announced that it will ban iPhone models in military buildings due to security concerns of its military. According to the news in South Korea’s local news agency Korean Herald, iPhones will be completely banned from being brought to the headquarters on June 1.

Sources said the military began testing the iPhone ban for military units in April. An Air Force announcement on April 11 marked official expansion plans.

Suspicious Data Leaks IN IPHONE PHONES

Wanting to prevent this situation, the South Korean government decided to ban iPhone phones to prevent data leakage at the headquarters. This decision raised concerns last September when a call recording app for iPhones was launched in Korea and attracted the attention of the military due to audio privacy risks.

The report, citing military sources, claimed that the headquarters saw the iPhone’s lack of compatibility as a need for a widespread ban on key security facilities such as Gyeryongdae, which maintains service branch orders.

The prestigious staff previously had stricter policies banning the use of smartphones at head offices. However, this policy changed in 2020 when a security application became mandatory for employees. Recently, the National Human Rights Commission reviewed the policy and concluded that requiring all employees to install the security app was unnecessary. They suggested applying restrictions to only essential personnel and specific locations.

This situation could affect 500 thousand soldiers…

South Korean military members must download the National Defense Mobile Security app, which all military devices must install to limit smartphone features such as camera, Wi-Fi, internet connection and microphone to prevent data leakage. However, due to strict privacy controls on iPhones, soldiers who download the app cannot ‘single’ disable microphones, USB functions or hardware other than the camera, putting military security at risk.

If implemented, the ban would first take effect at the tri-service headquarters in Gyeryongdae, potentially affecting all 499,800 active military personnel in the Army, Navy and Air Force.

In the Air Force document, there is a statement: “All types of voice recording, including private telephone conversations inside military buildings, are unavoidable.” This explains where the ban on the iPhone came from.