South Korea's Ministry of Science and ICT on May 11 held the "2026 Working-Level Consultative Body on Data Safe Zones" and discussed action plans to improve access to data safe zones and promote the use of previously undisclosed data.

The meeting was attended by 16 organisations, including the ministry, 11 managing bodies that operate data safe zones, and five institutions set to be newly designated as data safe zones. The five were selected this year through the ministry's "New Conversion and Designation Project for Data Safe Zones": Kangwon National University, the city of Busan and Busan Techno Park, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, the AI Industry Convergence Project Group, and Korea Western Power.

To expand and link data safe zones nationwide, the ministry selected five institutions holding previously undisclosed data as new candidates for conversion to data safe zones. It will provide up to 200 million won per institution.

At the meeting, the National Information Society Agency (NIA) presented "security cloud linkage measures and progress" among data safe zones. The Korea Data Agency (K-DATA) presented its "plan to push consulting to identify use cases for previously undisclosed data". Four managing bodies selected for a support project to advance data safe zones shared plans to identify innovation cases applying the regulatory sandbox system using previously undisclosed data.

Choi Dong-won (최동원), director general for AI Infrastructure Policy at the ministry, said, "We will smoothly push ahead with measures such as cloud linkage among institutions discussed at this working-level body and enhance access and usability for previously undisclosed data in high demand."