South Korean police have established their first dedicated cyber investigation teams to crack down on online platforms facilitating prostitution and illegal gambling.
The National Police Agency recently created "Vice Crime Cyber Investigation Teams" at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency through regular personnel changes, according to police sources on Sunday.
This marks the first time specialized cyber units have been formed specifically to combat vice crimes including prostitution and illegal gambling.
The Seoul and Gyeonggi Nambu agencies each converted one existing vice crime investigation team into a dedicated cyber unit, deploying seven and six investigators respectively. The teams reportedly comprise investigators with cyber investigation experience or backgrounds in related departments.
Police vice crime enforcement has traditionally focused on offline venues such as prostitution establishments and illegal gambling parlors. However, critics have noted that on-site crackdowns alone cannot curb the spread of crime as organized operators increasingly use online platforms for advertising and customer recruitment.
Police now view online sites as critical channels for maintaining and expanding vice crimes including prostitution. The new cyber teams plan to intensively monitor and investigate prostitution advertising sites and illegal gambling-related websites.
The agency will also coordinate with the Korea Communications Standards Commission to block access to illegal prostitution sites. For websites that repeatedly resurface under different URLs, police plan to pursue simultaneous investigations and administrative measures to maximize crime prevention effectiveness.
Police are also considering that many vice crime-related sites operate on overseas servers. International cooperation investigations may be conducted when necessary to track down foreign-based operators and recover criminal proceeds.
Police said they expect the launch of dedicated cyber investigation teams to significantly improve enforcement against online-based vice crimes. The agency is also reviewing plans to expand vice crime cyber investigation teams to other regional police agencies.