Science ministry funds AI tools to fight illegal sites and wildfire fraud

The science ministry said Tuesday it has selected three urgent research projects, including AI-based detection of illegal websites, under a fast-track cross-ministry program introduced this year to fund problems that cannot wait for the regular budget cycle.

The Ministry of Science and ICT chose the three from eight requests submitted by five central government agencies and other bodies, judging them on urgency, suitability for rapid work and overlap with existing programs. The projects cover AI-driven tracking of illegal websites, drone and AI inspection of wildfire recovery sites, and three-dimensional modeling of building interiors to support firefighters at large blazes.

The first project, requested by the gender equality and family ministry, aims to overcome the limits of current site-blocking, which illegal operators evade by repeatedly changing their web addresses. The new technology will map connections between sites and analyze information on illegal revenue, helping authorities respond faster when new sites appear.

The second, from the Korea Forest Service, addresses the burden of supervising recovery work after about 405 wildfires have struck the country, including the record Yeongnam blaze in March 2025 and the Miryang fire in February 2026. A May survey of 1,901 forestry companies found about 900 suspected of illegal or shoddy work, and drones and AI will allow more accurate checks of restoration sites and help prevent further damage such as landslides.

The third project, for the national fire agency, follows large fires at a Daejeon industrial firm in May and a Coupang logistics center in Incheon in July. It will develop digital-twin technology that produces three-dimensional models of indoor spaces so responders can quickly establish a building's internal structure and the location of firefighting equipment.

"It is important to secure the technologies needed in the field in a timely manner to respond to urgent national issues," said Park In-kyu, head of the ministry's science and technology innovation office.

The program, newly introduced this year, selects projects based on demand from government ministries and funds them as single-year tasks, bypassing the normal budget process. In its first round in July, the ministry picked four projects in cybersecurity, personal data protection, emerging infectious diseases and chemical accident prevention.

The ministry will keep reviewing research demand from other ministries so that projects can be launched quickly when emergencies arise, and will help agencies secure next year's budgets for follow-up research where pilot work shows promise.