South Korea's new app lets stalking victims track their harassers
What's the story
The South Korean government is working on a mobile application that will allow stalking victims to monitor the real-time location of their harassers. The initiative, announced by the country's Justice Ministry on Wednesday, comes as part of an amendment to South Korea's electronic monitoring law. The move comes amid growing public concern over high-profile stalking cases in recent years.
Existing measures
Current law provides limited protection to stalking victims
Under the current law, stalking victims receive text message alerts when their harassers are nearby. However, these alerts don't provide exact locations of the stalkers. This limitation makes it difficult for victims to determine the direction of their perpetrator, as per a statement from the Justice Ministry. The revised law aims to address this gap by providing real-time location tracking on smartphones.
Future developments
Integration with national emergency hotline planned
The South Korean authorities also plan to integrate the tracking system into their national emergency hotline. This would allow police to be dispatched immediately if a victim is in danger. The integration process is expected to be completed by next year, according to local media reports. The move comes amid criticism over the prevalence of stalking and violence against women in South Korea.
Legal changes
Stalking law revised to lower prosecution barriers
In 2021, South Korea introduced an anti-stalking law with a maximum three-year prison sentence and a fine of up to 30 million Korean won ($20,400). The law was amended in 2023 to make it easier to prosecute stalkers. Since then, reports against stalkers have skyrocketed from 7,600 in 2022 to over 13,000 last year.