KT said on Sept. 29 it took part in the National Intelligence Service-led international cyber exercise APEX (Allied Power Exercise) 2026 to strengthen real-world cyber defense capabilities.

APEX is an international cyber exercise launched in 2024 to strengthen global cybersecurity cooperation. This year’s drill ran from Sept. 16 to 18 and drew participants from 23 countries across the Americas, Europe and the Indo-Pacific.

KT’s red team carried out tasks including real-time incident response, digital forensics and strengthening system security in a joint team that included U.S. government agencies as well as Latvia and Lithuania. The joint team worked on defending national critical infrastructure including 5G networks, checking for vulnerabilities in Linux systems, maintaining the availability of power and communications network services, and responding to security incidents. KT stressed it validated its expertise particularly in digital forensics and incident response.

KT also took part in the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence-led international cyber defense exercise Locked Shields 2026 in a South Korea-Hungary joint team, carrying out tasks including defending satellite communications infrastructure and server and web services. KT plans to apply experience accumulated in international drills to real-world security operations and also strengthen AI-based threat detection and security analysis capabilities.

Lee Sang-woon (이상운), executive vice president and head of KT’s information security office, said, "We will expand cooperation with global security agencies and experts and advance our ability to respond to the latest attack techniques to safely protect the nation’s core communications infrastructure and customer information."