Enforcement Decree of the Electronic Financial Transactions Act provides under Art. 12 that a subsidiary electronic financial company, such as a payment gateway system that records and transmits electronic transaction information, must keep the records for at least three years. This affects not only payment gateway service providers but also electronic commerce firms that utilise the services. This retention period requirement has been in place since its enactment in 2006.

Under the Personal Information Protection Act, data controllers must appoint a privacy officer who comprehensively takes charge of personal information processing (Art. 31). The requirement has been in place since its enactment in 2011.

The Copyright Act, since its 2006 amendment, has established a safe harbour regime for intermediaries, exempting Internet Service Providers (ISPs) from liability for copyright infringement when acting as mere conduits, caching, hosting, or searching information (Art. 102). ISPs are also not liable for users' infringing acts if it is technically impossible for them to take preventive measures. Additionally, Art. 122-2 of the Act led to the creation of the Korean Copyright Protection Agency (KCOPA) in 2016, which, under Art. 133-3, is empowered to investigate networks for illegal reproductions and apply corrective measures such as issuing warnings, suppressing or suspending transmissions, and suspending repeat infringers' accounts. KCOPA can also request the blocking of access to foreign websites involved in copyright infringement, as per Art. 44-7 of the Law on the Promotion of the Use of Information and Communications Networks and Information Protection.

A basic legal framework on intermediary liability beyond copyright infringement is absent in Korea's law and jurisprudence.

According to Arts. 12-3 of the Game Industry Promotion Act, users are required to verify the real names and ages of users of game products when they join as members and self-authenticate. This requirement has been in place since 2011 as part of the amendment of the Game Industry Promotion Act through Law No. 10879 of July 2011.

In order to provide Internet multimedia broadcasting services, approval of the Broadcasting and the Communication Committee is required under the Internet Multimedia Broadcasting Business Act. This regime under Art. 4 has been in place since 2008.

Per Art. 5 of the Act on the Protection, Use, Etc. of Location Information, any person who intends to engage in location information business shall obtain permission from the Korea Communications Commission. Even if permitted to do such business, location information providers or location-based service providers cannot collect the location information of individuals without the individual's consent under Art. 18. These restrictions have been in place since 2005.
It is reported that, although a supplier may export location information once acquiring a permit, Korea has never approved such a permit despite numerous applications by foreign suppliers over the past decade.

Commercial presence is not required to provide cross-border services under the Commercial Act and the Enforcement Decree of Foreign Exchange Transactions Act. However, it is reported that "Korea prohibits foreign satellite service providers from selling services (e.g., transmission capacity) directly to end-users without going through a company established in Korea. Given existing investment restrictions, this prohibition significantly restricts the ability of foreign satellite service suppliers to compete in the Korean market".

The Patent Law, enacted in 1990, does not include provisions that discriminate based on the nationality of a patent applicant. However, under Art. 25, non-resident foreigners can only obtain patents if their home countries provide reciprocal treatment to Korean nationals or if a treaty or convention with Korea exists, following the reciprocity principle. Additionally, Art. 5 stipulates that individuals without a domicile or place of business in Korea cannot initiate patent-related procedures or file legal proceedings against administrative decisions unless represented by a patent attorney or agent based in Korea. Finally, Art. 201 requires patent applications to include a Korean translation of key documents, such as the abstract, description of the invention, claims, and titles of drawings, among others.

Korea is a party to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Korea has a clear regime of copyright exceptions that follows the fair use model, which enables the lawful use of copyrighted work by others without obtaining permission. Art. 35.5 of the Korean Copyright Act lists the exceptions, which include any use that does not conflict with the general method of use of the copyrighted work and which unfairly infringes the legitimate interests of the author. To determine whether an act of use of a copyrighted work falls under the fair use model, the following issues are considered: the purpose and nature of the use; the types and uses of copyrighted works; the proportion and importance of the part used in the whole work; and the impact of the use of the work on the market or current value or market or potential value of the work.

It is reported that the rapid advancement of digital technologies has led to a rise in online copyright infringement. One prevalent issue in Korea is stream-ripping, a practice where specialised software is used to create unauthorised copies of copyrighted content from licensed streaming platforms. As a result, stream-ripping has become a major form of music piracy, causing significant economic harm to music creators and undermining legitimate online services.

Korea has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Copyright Treaty.

Korea has ratified the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.

The Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act provides a framework for the effective protection of trade secrets. According to Art.1 of the Act, trade secrets are defined as "information, including a production method, sale method, useful technical or business information for business activity, that is not known publicly, is the subject of considerable effort to maintain its secrecy and has independent economic value. The law (chapter 2) contains provisions for the protection of trade secrets, such as an injunction against infringement, liability for damages, and restoration of reputation.