Cheong Wa Dae said it will set up a task force (TF) to draw up measures to eradicate damage from "illegal sports streaming sites" and "distribution of digital sex crime materials." Kang Hoon-sik, chief of staff to the president, presided over a senior secretaries' meeting on the 25th and ordered the immediate formation of a TF under the senior presidential secretaries for civil affairs, social affairs, public communications, and AI future planning at Cheong Wa Dae to devise practical, concrete response plans and report back.
According to Ahn Gwi-ryeong, deputy spokesperson for Cheong Wa Dae, Kang said at the meeting, "Even though the problems of illegal sports streaming sites and the distribution of digital sex crime materials keep recurring, the lack of fundamental solutions and reliance on stopgap measures are increasing the number of victims."
Kang said, "Illegal sports streaming sites are luring users into illegal gambling with free viewing as bait, and reports of illegal sports gambling exceeded 20,000 in 2024," adding, "More than 70% of digital sex crime materials were found to remain accessible through circumvention even after being blocked."
He added, "We can no longer protect the public with patchwork prescriptions. We need fundamental measures that change the structure itself," and ordered the establishment of TFs under the relevant senior secretaries to prepare countermeasures.
With severe heat waves feared this year due to El Niño, Kang noted that on the 15th, the earliest on record, a death from heat-related illness occurred, saying, "In the face of extreme heat, the vulnerable suffer first and suffer the most."
He then instructed the Ministry of the Interior and Safety to expand and open cooling shelters early, and the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) to check safety guidelines for outdoor workers and enforce thorough on-site management. Ahn said he also asked "all ministries to make every effort to prevent any avoidable loss of life."