The integration of artificial intelligence into the financial industry is expanding rapidly, but safeguards for financial consumers remain inadequate, experts warned. Critics also argue that excessive consumer protection requirements at bank branches are creating inconvenience for customers.
"When AI recommends products, it's unclear whether this constitutes simple information provision or active solicitation," said Lee Jung-min, a research fellow at the Korea Financial Consumer Protection Foundation, at a Private Financial Committee breakfast seminar held in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday.
"As savings banks now use loan comparison services from platforms like Toss and Kakao, intermediaries have gained the upper hand, yet financial institutions still bear primary responsibility for consumer protection," Lee said. "Regulations on online intermediary platforms and algorithm-based AI are insufficient."
Lim Byung-hwa, a professor at Sungkyunkwan University's School of Business, who attended the meeting, noted that AI has been used to manipulate video conferences at global multinational corporations to induce large money transfers.
"As AI is being deployed in voice phishing and romance scams, fraud methods are evolving, and countermeasures must be developed urgently," Lim said.
Participants called for additional regulations on so-called "dark patterns" that can distort consumers' rational judgment in digital financial environments. Dark patterns refer to design techniques that steer users toward specific choices, such as displaying only consent buttons prominently or making withdrawal and rejection procedures difficult during financial product enrollment.
"While dark pattern guidelines exist, they only apply when consumers actually sign up for financial products," Lee said. "Dark patterns are harming consumer interests in various situations including membership registration, not just product enrollment, so supplementary or specialized regulations are needed."
Speakers also emphasized the need to address digital assets such as stablecoins. Choi Chang-gyu, professor emeritus of economics at Myongji University, said that while a user protection law for digital assets exists, significant blind spots remain.
"As digital assets continue to spread and consumer protection needs grow, urgent improvements are necessary," Choi said.
Some participants pointed to excessive explanation requirements for in-person product enrollment at branches. Lee In-sil, head of the Korea Peninsula Future Research Institute and former Statistics Korea commissioner, said branch employees often complete mobile enrollment on behalf of customers because verification requirements are too burdensome.
"The institutional costs from excessive consumer protection are high," Lee In-sil said.
Many called for fundamental changes to financial consumer protection policy. Lee Jung-min of the Foundation stressed that strengthening preventive regulations is urgent, adding that authorities should consider mandating consumer impact analysis during product development and requiring assessments of effects on financially vulnerable groups.