Chey Tae-won, chairman of South Korea’ SK Group, issued a public apology on Wednesday and promised to do his utmost to resolve the recent hacking incident involving subscriber USIMs at SK telecom Co.

Chey attended a daily briefing on the hacking incident held at SK telecom’s headquarters in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday, and his public apology came 19 days after the cyberattack.

“The recent cyberattack at SK telecom caused great anxiety and inconvenience to our customers and the public,” he said. “I sincerely apologize on behalf of the entire SK Group.”

Chey also acknowledged the criticism that communication and response after the incident had been insufficient, saying, “It is deeply regrettable. The management, including myself, feels painfully responsible for not being more attentive from the customer’s perspective.”

“The criticism from customers, the media, the National Assembly, and government agencies is deserved, and we humbly accept it,” Chey added. He particularly emphasized that the entire SK Group would undergo a comprehensive review of its security systems and increase investments in cybersecurity.

SK plans to establish an Information Security Innovation Committee under the SK SUPEX Council, the group’s top decision-making body, with participation from external experts. The committee will evaluate the vulnerabilities and security frameworks of all group affiliates, including ICT companies like SK telecom and SK hynix Inc., and make structural improvements.

This will be the first time the group establishes an independent security body at the group level.

“This is not just a company-level security issue, it is a matter of national security,” Chey said.

Given that the group includes major companies handling national strategic assets - such as SK telecom, a national telecom operator, and SK hynix, a producer of AI semiconductors, Chey’s comments reflect growing concern that information leaks could threaten national survival.

Details, such as which affiliate will lead the committee, will be announced later.

Chey was cautious about the issue of waiving SK telecom contract termination fees.

“We need to consider both fairness to users and legal issues,” he said. “The SK telecom board is currently discussing the matter, and I hope that a good resolution is reached.”

Chey noted that he is not a member of SK telecom’s board and does not have policy-making authority.

“We will fully cooperate with the government investigation to determine the cause of the incident and ensure that there is no damage to any customers,” Chey said.

He added that the conglomerate will return to the most fundamental questions to “regain customers’ trust and reconsider what is truly essential for a company.”

Meanwhile, SK telecom announced that all 24.11 million eligible users have now been enrolled in its USIM protection service. Although USIM card replacements are progressing more slowly with only 1.07 million completed so far, SK telecom expects the replacement pace to pick up in mid-May 2025 as more USIM inventory becomes available.

SK telecom will also begin offering USIM formatting services from May 12th onwards and will soon introduce simplified procedures for self-service eSIM replacement as part of further countermeasures.

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