SK Telecom announced that as of the 5th, the cumulative number of USIM replacements has reached 1 million since the server hacking incident. From this day forward, SK Telecom will prohibit new subscription services at all T World stores and focus on USIM replacements.
Kim Hee-seop, head of the SK Telecom PR Center, said at a daily briefing held at Samhwa Building that, "As of now, about 1 million USIMs have been replaced, and 7.7 million people have applied for replacement reservations," and noted, "We will secure the USIM supplies as quickly as possible to facilitate rapid replacements."
As of 9 a.m. that day, the number of subscribers to the USIM protection service was counted at 22.18 million. SK Telecom announced that it will halt recruitment of new subscribers at T World stores and online channels starting that day.
Kim said, "Until yesterday, we responded as much as possible at the airports, and once the holiday is over, we will allocate USIMs to the stores as they arrive, prioritizing those who made reservations for their replacements."
He stated, "We have decided that those who want to can change their USIM at any time, and it's not the case that it must be done by this month or next month," adding, "As far as we know so far and from what has been reported by law enforcement, there has been no confirmed damage due to illegal USIM duplication or issues where customer account information was hacked and funds were missing in the last two weeks since the hacking incident."
However, he mentioned, "We cannot guarantee that everything is fine just because there have been no incidents thus far," and emphasized, "We will take measures, including additional layers of protection, to ensure that customers feel as secure as possible." Regarding responsibility in case of hacking damage, he replied, "Whether or not they have subscribed to the USIM protection service, it is correct to take responsibility for the damage."
Ryu Jeong-hwan, vice president of SK Telecom, referred to the notice from the Korea Internet Security Agency (KISA) that additional malware had been discovered during the investigation of the SK Telecom server, stating, "If significant results come out, there will likely be an announcement from the joint investigation team."