South KoreaWhat is pseudonymized data processing?
Pseudonymized data processing in South Korea means replacing personal identifiers with artificial identifiers so that data cannot be attributed to a specific individual without additional information, which must be kept separately and subject to technical/organizational safeguards.
What the Law Says
Under South Korean law, pseudonymized data is defined and regulated by the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). It is distinct from anonymized data and remains subject to PIPA’s protections because re-identification is possible with additional information.
Pseudonymization is defined in the Personal Information Protection Act as the processing of personal information in such a way that it can no longer be attributed to a specific data subject without the use of separate additional information.
This additional information must be kept separately and protected by technical and organizational measures to prevent identification.
Unlike anonymized data—which is excluded from PIPA’s scope—pseudonymized data is still considered 'personal information' and thus remains fully subject to PIPA’s obligations, including consent, purpose limitation, and security requirements.
Statutory Text‘Pseudonymized information’ means personal information processed in such a manner that it cannot be attributed to a specific data subject without the use of separate additional information, and such additional information is kept separately and subject to technical and organizational measures to ensure that personal information is not attributed to an identified or identifiable natural person.
— Personal Information Protection Act, Art. 2(1) — Definition of terms
What to Do
Identify all personal identifiers in your dataset (e.g., name, ID number, contact details).
Replace them with consistent, non-reversible pseudonyms (e.g., random tokens or hash values).
Store the mapping table (linking pseudonyms to original identifiers) separately, with strict access controls.
Apply technical safeguards (e.g., encryption, access logs, role-based permissions) to both the pseudonymized data and the additional information.
Document your pseudonymization process and review it regularly to ensure ongoing compliance with PIPA.
Sources
Not legal advice. This article is general information based on publicly available sources, written for educational purposes. Laws change and individual situations vary. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction before acting on anything you read here. Last reviewed: 2026-06-08.