Naver's new conversational artificial intelligence (AI) search service, "AI Tab," has passed the government's pre-adequacy review ahead of its official launch next month.
The Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) said Friday that it deliberated and approved Naver's pre-adequacy application for "AI Tab" at its plenary meeting on May 27, on the condition that the company implements the consultation requirements presented. The pre-adequacy review system is a mechanism through which companies establish compliance measures with the Personal Information Protection Act jointly with the PIPC before introducing new technology services such as AI. If a company fulfills the conditions presented by the government, it is exempted from subsequent disciplinary action.
Set to launch in June, "AI Tab" is a conversational search service in which an AI chatbot summarizes and analyzes the core content of search results, moving away from the conventional method of listing web pages. The service underwent beta testing for Naver Membership users in April. Naver plans to generate customized responses by utilizing not only users' past service histories, gender, age and interests but also their blog and cafe activity records and shopping histories.
Accordingly, the PIPC required Naver to establish safeguards to address concerns over potential personal information infringement that may arise during the operation of "AI Tab."
First, for users who do not want personalized responses, Naver was required to provide a data opt-out option and guide them through the relevant procedures, ensuring ex post control rights. The company was also instructed to transparently disclose what customized information is used in the service and to take additional safety measures to prevent data leaks. In addition, the PIPC required Naver to restrict the analysis of sensitive information defined by law, such as ideology, beliefs, union or political party membership and health records, and to ensure that unique identification information, account numbers and credit card information are not included in AI-generated responses.
The PIPC plans to conduct on-site inspections to verify whether these consultation requirements are actually being implemented once "AI Tab" is officially launched.
"As data processing has grown more complex with the recent spread of AI technology, more companies are requesting to resolve legal uncertainties before launching their services," a PIPC official said. "We will improve a comprehensive support system encompassing the pre-adequacy review system and the AI special provisions in the amendment to the Protection Act that recently passed the National Policy Committee, in order to actively support a smooth AI transformation and data utilization."
