The Ministry of Science and ICT is moving in earnest to build a research security management framework at eight universities, selected to address the vulnerability of university research sites to technology leaks. With international joint research now routine, the aim is to help each university establish its own defensive foundation to protect researchers and research assets.
 [코리안투데이] Kickoff meeting for the 2026 Research Security Capacity-Building Support Program © 장형임 기자 |
The Ministry of Science and ICT (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Bae Kyung-hoon) held a kickoff meeting on August 13 with the eight universities selected for the 2026 Research Security Capacity-Building Support Program: Pusan National University, Seoul National University, Yonsei University, Yeungnam University, Incheon National University, Changwon National University, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), and Hanyang University.
The selection was divided into Type 1, targeting universities in the greater Seoul area and the four science and technology institutes, and Type 2, targeting regional universities, with four universities chosen in each category. Support amounts to 500 million won per university annually (250 million won for 2026), and the support period runs from July 2026 to December 2028, structured as one year and six months plus an additional year.
The program stems from the vulnerabilities that have surfaced as universities have grown more open. While international joint research has become routine and personnel exchange has expanded, critics have repeatedly pointed out that universities themselves lack the organization and staff to manage research security. In effect, universities have had few means of their own to screen out the risk of research achievements and core technologies leaking abroad through management blind spots. The ministry is pursuing the program from this year so that universities can continue open innovation while protecting their researchers and research assets.
The support covers four areas. First, the eight selected universities will establish organizations dedicated to research security affairs and assign full-time personnel. In particular, oversight will be positioned at the level of a vice president or higher to enhance effectiveness. Second, they will operate systems to review and manage, in advance, the reliability and safety of partner institutions and cooperation content during international collaboration. Management of international cooperation, overseas activities, and foreign research personnel will be systematized, along with the revision of related regulations and internal fact-finding checks. Third, universities will offer counseling and advisory services, guidance materials, and education to campus members to raise awareness of research security. Fourth, professionals such as lawyers will be assigned to support legal and administrative matters in international cooperation aimed at protecting research assets, including contracts and intellectual property rights.
Each university will build a tailored management framework — covering specialized fields, priority activities, and integration with campus systems — that reflects its own conditions and characteristics. Building on government support, the ministry has set as its goal securing an operational foundation on which each university’s research security organization and support system can continue running sustainably even after the program ends.
University-level responses dovetail with the national framework. The ministry will link the selected universities with the Research Security Center (KAIST and Chung-Ang University, from April 2026), an on-the-ground hub supporting universities and researchers, and the Global Research Security Policy Support Center (Science and Technology Policy Institute, from April 2026), which provides overall support for policy and institutional implementation. Going further, it plans to build a national research security response framework encompassing all relevant ministries, related agencies, and research sites.
Attending the meeting were the ministry’s Director-General for International Cooperation, officials from the eight selected universities, and representatives of the Research Security Center (KAIST and Chung-Ang University), who discussed operational plans and cooperation measures.
Hwang Sung-hoon, the ministry’s Director-General for International Cooperation, said, ‘We plan to continue supporting research security capacity-building so that a management framework takes root that resolves vulnerabilities such as the overseas leakage of technology that can occur at university research sites and helps ensure safe international cooperation.’
지역 홍보대사 신청 기자양성과정 신청 코리안투데이 지부장 신청 코리안투데이 인천강화
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