Korea employment agency wins AI ethics certification mark

The Korea Employment Information Service said Monday it has received an "AI ethics compliance institution" certification mark from the National Information Society Agency, recognition that the public employment agency meets the government's requirements for responsible use of artificial intelligence.

The mark is issued to institutions that establish their own AI ethics principles and put employees through AI ethics training, among other conditions. The service is headed by President Lee Chang-soo.

The certification follows the service's decision in December 2025 to enact a set of AI ethics principles tailored to employment services, built on four core values — human centrism, realization of social value, trust and fairness — and ten ethical rules. The agency drew up the principles ahead of the AI Framework Act, which took effect in January 2026, as a preemptive internal standard, and trained all employees this year on the framework act, AI literacy and ethics.

"Acquiring the AI ethics compliance mark is an official confirmation that the Korea Employment Information Service is an institution that uses artificial intelligence responsibly," Lee said in a statement. "We will work harder to build reliable AI employment services that people can use with confidence."

The service said it will now refine guidelines and a governance system for AI-based employment services that translate the principles into practice, checking ethical standards at each stage from planning to operation. It will also continue annual AI ethics training for staff.

The push comes as ethical concerns such as deepfakes and hiring bias multiply. According to Stanford University's HAI AI Index Report 2025, AI-related incidents reported in 2024 rose 56.4 percent from a year earlier to 233, the highest on record.