According to the publication The Korea Gerald, the South Korean military is considering a complete ban on the use of Apple iPhones on military premises due to concerns about possible leakage of confidential information through voice recordings.
A group of senior officers, who wished to remain anonymous, reported that on April 11, the country's Air Force headquarters issued an announcement on the internal military network server, instructing a total ban on any devices capable of recording voice and not allowing third-party applications to control their functions, starting from June 1. Specifically, iPhones were named as devices subject to the ban. The decision to ban iPhones in the Korean military was made at joint meetings held by the army, navy, and air force staff.
“It is inevitable to block any type of voice recording, not only formal communication, including meetings, office conversations, business announcements, complaints, and consultations with the public, but also informal communication, such as private phone calls (within military facilities),” the document says.
The ban is supposed to cover all types of smartphones, smartwatches, and other wearable devices. However, sources claimed that smartphones based on Android, mainly from Samsung Electronics, will be exempt from the ban, while the document directly states that “smuggling of iPhones will be completely prohibited.”
- The reason why iPhones will be banned, while Android-based smartphones, such as the Galaxy series from Samsung, will allegedly lie in the fact that iPhones do not fully comply with the restrictions outlined by the National Defense Mobile Security - the military application for managing mobile devices. When the security application is activated, it restricts several functions of the smartphone, including the camera, Wi-Fi, modem, USB functions, and microphone. However, Apple does not allow third-party applications to control iPhone functions, except for the camera.
Discussions about the potential ban on iPhones started in September last year, when SK Telecom, the country's leading telecommunications operator, introduced an unprecedented call recording feature for iPhone through the A-Dot application. Initially, Apple's iPhones do not support call recording functions due to privacy issues, as in many U.S. states, including California, it is prohibited to record voice calls without the consent of the other person.
In Korea, call recording is legal, but cases of abuse, such as violation of privacy, may be subject to legal punishment. Many Galaxy users say they continue to use Samsung phones mainly because of the call recording function. Almost seven out of 10 Koreans use Galaxy phones.
The security military application is criticized for its unreliability. Depending on the version of Android installed on the phone, the application. However, another military official stated that this deficiency will likely be addressed later through updates.
Meanwhile, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea in March ruled that the obligation of all military personnel in every place to install security software is an excessive restriction on human rights. The commission recommended to the defense minister to create a provision for mandatory installation of security applications in the relevant military security law. It is also recommended to limit the mandatory installation of the program only for necessary personnel and places.
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