South Korea scrambles to restore digital services after server fire

South Korea is one of the world’s most wired countries, with many government services from identification to media briefings online. (AFP file photo)

• South Korea is one of the world’s most wired countries, with many government services from identification to media briefings online
• Authorities said 62 government services had been restored out of about 647 systems affected by the fire

SEOUL: Hundreds of South Korean public services remained offline on Monday after a fire at a data center disrupted government websites and exposed vulnerabilities in the country’s digital infrastructure.
Authorities said 62 government services had been restored out of about 647 systems affected by the fire which broke out during routine maintenance in a server room at the state-run National Information Resources Service in Daejeon on Friday.
President Lee Jae Myung has apologized for the disruption, saying it was surprising the government had no better backup after similar government service outages in 2023.
Organizations affected by the fire include Korea Customs, the National Police Agency and the National Fire Agency, according to the safety ministry. Some government websites like the safety ministry were out of service as of Monday.
Officials have not given a timetable for full restoration of the disrupted services.
“We see services restoring every hour,” Safety Minister Yun Ho-jung told a briefing, citing recovery of Government24, Korea’s main portal for public services, and financial and postal systems run by Korea Post.
South Korea is one of the world’s most wired countries, with many government services from identification to media briefings online.
Experts said the latest outage suggested the government lacked adequate systems for immediate recovery of critical public services despite major tech disruptions in recent years.
In 2022, a fire at a data center hit some of the country’s most-used apps and websites, including Kakao messenger and the company’s online payment services among others.
“Such disruptions should never occur at a national agency, and real-time synchronization and recovery systems need to be implemented as soon as possible,” said Lee Seong-yeob, a professor at Korea University’s Graduate School of Management of Technology.
“The government should have recognized the need for a higher level of contingency planning, but it seems they were complacent.”
President Lee on Sunday ordered “significant improvement” in the security of government systems and asked ministers to propose budgets for emergency systems to prevent similar outages.
Battery expired
Investigators suspect the fire began after a battery produced by LG Energy Solution exploded during maintenance on Friday night, damaging some servers and forcing hundreds to be shut down. LG Energy Solution declined to comment, saying the matter was under investigation.
Yun said the government would notify the public as major services came back online and warned of increased disruption to daily life while recovery continued.
The batteries, sold and maintained by LG Energy affiliate LG CNS, had been used for more than a decade and their warranty expired last year, according to the safety ministry.
LG CNS advised the government to replace them during a routine checkup in June 2024, although they remained functional, the ministry said.