BY EMMANUEL OGBONNA
South Korea will begin enforcing mandatory labels on all advertisements created with artificial intelligence starting next year, taking aim at a rapidly expanding ecosystem of deepfaked endorsements and fabricated experts that has flooded social media feeds. The decision comes amid mounting public concern that AI-generated promotions, many of them featuring cloned celebrity voices or digitally invented medical professionals, are misleading consumers and exploiting people who struggle to identify manipulated content.
The policy was unveiled Wednesday following a government meeting led by Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, who emphasized the need to act quickly before the problem grows beyond regulators’ reach. Officials said the country will intensify its crackdown on AI-generated promotional content, particularly ads that target vulnerable groups such as seniors, who are statistically more likely to trust online claims that appear visually convincing.
Lee Dong-hoon, director of economic and financial policy at the Office for Government Policy Coordination, said in a briefing that the influx of deceptive ads is “disrupting the market order” and requires immediate intervention. He explained that anyone involved in creating or distributing AI-generated promotional content — whether images, videos, or audio — will be obligated to attach clear AI labels. Platforms will also be barred from removing those labels, forcing consistency across marketing spaces.
South Korean regulators say a broad range of deceptive ads now feature deepfaked celebrities or digitally fabricated experts promoting everything from diet supplements and anti-aging cosmetics to shady investment schemes and illegal gambling websites. These ads have become ubiquitous on YouTube, Facebook, and other platforms, often blending seamlessly with legitimate content. Officials say such tactics are designed to exploit the trust that viewers place in celebrities or clinical-looking presenters.
To implement the new requirements, the government plans to revise the telecommunications act and other associated laws so the labeling rules, stricter monitoring, and tougher penalties can take effect in early 2026. Platform operators — including major social media companies — will be responsible for ensuring advertisers abide by the rules, making them directly accountable for violations.
The scale of the issue has grown rapidly. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety detected more than 96,700 illegal online ads for food and pharmaceutical products in 2024 alone. Another 68,950 were identified through September of this year, a sharp rise from the 59,000 flagged in 2023. The spread of illicit AI-assisted promotions has now expanded into education services, cosmetics, gambling, and other industries, overwhelming enforcement agencies such as the Korea Consumer Agency.
Beyond commercial deception, South Korea is also battling more serious digital crimes enhanced by artificial intelligence. Last month, a Seoul court sentenced a 33-year-old man to life in prison after investigators uncovered an online blackmail ring that targeted over 200 people, many of them minors. Victims were threatened with AI-generated sexual deepfakes and other digitally manipulated images — a case that heightened national alarm over the misuse of AI tools.
Officials say new penalties will be introduced next year to discourage the creation and distribution of fabricated AI ads. Individuals or businesses found knowingly spreading false or harmful information online could face punitive damages up to five times the financial losses caused. Regulators also plan to speed up emergency takedown procedures and enable 24-hour response reviews, allowing authorities to block harmful ads even before the full deliberation process is complete.
The government will simultaneously expand enforcement capacity at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the Korea Consumer Agency — using AI technology to detect harmful AI, underscoring the dual nature of the tools now reshaping the marketplace.
Even as South Korea increases protections against AI misuse, public enthusiasm for AI innovation continues to surge. Prime Minister Kim said the country must “minimize the side effects of new technologies” but acknowledged that artificial intelligence will remain central to the nation’s economic strategy.
President Lee Jae Myung, speaking separately to industry leaders, reaffirmed South Korea’s ambition to remain a global frontrunner in the development of advanced semiconductor technologies that underpin AI systems. The government plans major investments in AI-specific chips and high-performance semiconductors, and intends to expand chip-manufacturing hubs into the southern regions beyond Seoul’s metropolitan area. South Korean companies, led by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, already commanded more than 65 percent of the worldwide memory chip market last year.
In a further push to prepare the country’s digital infrastructure for AI-driven industries, the Ministry of Science and ICT announced that wireless carriers will be required to transition to standalone 5G networks as a condition for renewing their 3G and LTE licenses. These networks, which offer lower latency and greater bandwidth, are considered essential for the next generation of AI applications.
While South Korea moves to embrace advanced technologies, its leaders insist that the rise of AI must be balanced with strong consumer protections — a message underscored by the government’s new push to expose, regulate, and clearly label the digital content the public sees every day.
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