Korea's five major commercial banks and other financial institutions have come under successive hacking attacks in recent days, with the attackers suspected of using artificial intelligence (AI) tools, leading to personal data leaks. The presidential office said on Oct. 4 that President Lee Jae-myung has ordered a thorough investigation and countermeasures.
According to reports, Shinhan Bank was hacked on Sept. 28, leaking the data of more than 25,000 customers. KB Kookmin Bank, Hana Bank, BNK Busan Bank, Yegaram Savings Bank and Hyundai Capital—the financial arm of Hyundai Motor Group—were subsequently attacked, with the leaked data including not only names and national ID numbers but also annual income, credit limits and employers' identities. Woori Bank and NH NongHyup Bank also confirmed attacks, though it has not been confirmed whether their data was leaked.
The investigation found that the cases involve ARTEX AI, an AI agent-driven autonomous penetration system that can breach business systems accessible from outside, including from overseas. Korean regulators believe these malicious tools may have broadly targeted security vulnerabilities across multiple financial firms rather than a single institution. Citing data submitted by banks to lawmakers, Yonhap News Agency reported that the attack traffic originated from IP addresses in multiple countries, including the United States, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam and the United Kingdom.
After receiving a briefing on Oct. 4, Lee ordered officials to "take the matter seriously and make every effort to conduct a thorough investigation and formulate countermeasures." The Financial Services Commission (FSC) said its chairman held an emergency meeting that day with executives from financial industry associations, regulators, and affected institutions, warning that the financial industry must remain on the highest alert.
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