개인정보보호법과 정보통신망법의 관계 분석— 개인정보보호법 제6조를 중심으로 —

Abstract

When there is a special provision in other laws in relation to the Personal Information Protection Act ("PIPA"), that special provision applies. However, the fact that the PIPA and other laws regulate differently with regard to the processing of personal data does not always mean that the latter prevails over the former. This is because the provisions of the latter do not necessarily confine the scope of application to a certain person, object, or matter for the purpose of that law. Accordingly, it is necessary to carefully examine the differences between the PIPA and other such laws. In case where the PIPA and other such laws including the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection ("APICNUIP”) provide for virtually identical or similar contents, the overlapping provisions in other such laws should be removed. At the same time, with the adoption of the PIPA, the distinction between the public and private sectors in the processing of personal data has blurred. Given the fact that in today's information-oriented society, majority of businesses no longer distinguish on-line and off-line operations, it is desirable that relevant provisions of the APICNUIP should be incorporated into the PIPA. As to other such laws on the processing of personal data, the provisions therein can be adjusted either by specifically reinforcing or alleviating the relevant text according to the purpose of such laws. Moreover, specific standards on the processing of personal data which meet the needs of particular industries or businesses can be addressed through the relevant guidelines on the processing of personal data as provided for under Article 12 of the PIPA. In order for the PIPA to effectively apply as a general law on the processing of personal data and to substantially protect the privacy of data subjects, the legal system on the processing of personal data needs to be uniformed on the basis of the PIPA. In fact, as only two years have passed since the PIPA came into force, as of writing this paper, it should be amended to accommodate and reflect the continuously changing societal environment. In addition, other such laws on the processing of personal data should also be revised to enable the PIPA to function as a general law. Continuous improvements to the legal system on the processing of personal data are required.