Disclosure of official secrets, Personal Information Protection Act violation

Disclosure of official secrets, violation of the Personal Information Protection Act, and automatic dismissal of public officials

The crime of disclosing official secrets is committed when a public official or former public official discloses a secret acquired in the course of duty under law. The statutory penalty is imprisonment without labor for not more than 2 years or suspension of qualifications for not more than 5 years.

In addition, disclosing personal information learned in the course of work or providing it for use by others without authority also constitutes a violation of the Personal Information Protection Act, which carries a statutory penalty of imprisonment for not more than 5 years or a fine of not more than 50,000,000 Korean won.

Meanwhile, a public official who is sentenced to imprisonment without labor or heavier (including actual imprisonment, suspended sentence, or suspension of sentence) is subject to automatic dismissal. However, for suspension of sentence, only if the offense is bribery, sexual crime, embezzlement, or breach of trust does automatic dismissal apply.

Recently, attorney Joo Youngjae achieved a suspension of sentence in a case involving disclosure of official secrets and violation of the Personal Information Protection Act, which we will introduce.

Facts of the case

The defendant (the client) was a public official belonging to a local council. Around March 2020, during the outbreak of COVID-19, the defendant came across a 'situation report' document stating that a suspected COVID-19 patient had appeared in the jurisdiction, shared in a KakaoTalk group chat used by council staff to share work materials. The 'situation report' included personal information such as the suspected patient's name, gender, age, residence, visited hospital, and family relations.

The defendant immediately sent a screenshot of the 'situation report' to a journalist he knew via KakaoTalk, and the journalist wrote and distributed an article based on the 'situation report'.

Some time later, the defendant was indicted for disclosure of official secrets and violation of the Personal Information Protection Act. He came to attorney Joo Youngjae worried not only about criminal punishment but also about losing his public official status.

Attorney Joo Youngjae's response

Since the 'situation report' that the defendant leaked was highly likely to constitute an official secret and clearly contained personal information, attorney Joo Youngjae, while arguing for acquittal, actively argued sentencing factors in order to obtain a suspension of sentence.

Court's decision

The court accepted attorney Joo Youngjae's arguments on sentencing, stating that the defendant was sincerely remorseful, there appeared to be no intention to disrupt quarantine work, and the victim had never expressed a desire for punishment, and exceptionally pronounced a suspension of sentence for the defendant.

As a result of the judgment, the defendant was able to maintain his public official status.