TLDR: South Korea’s privacy regulator, the Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC), has released its inaugural privacy guidelines for generative artificial intelligence. These guidelines aim to provide clarity on data handling, reduce legal uncertainties, and ensure robust safeguards throughout the AI lifecycle for developers and service providers.
SEOUL – In a significant move to address the evolving landscape of artificial intelligence, South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) officially unveiled its first comprehensive privacy guidelines for the development and use of generative AI on August 6, 2025. The initiative seeks to clarify how existing privacy laws apply to AI technologies, thereby reducing legal ambiguities and establishing consistent safeguards for personal data.
The guidelines are specifically designed to assist both developers of large language models (LLMs) and providers utilizing these models to build and offer AI services. A core objective is to integrate privacy considerations from the earliest stages of AI design and operation, emphasizing principles such as ‘privacy-by-design,’ lawful data utilization, and robust protections against data leaks and misuse.
PIPC Chair Ko Hak-soo stated, ‘These guidelines should provide the clarity needed to ensure privacy considerations are fully integrated into generative AI development and use.’ The document is structured to address privacy obligations across four critical phases of the AI lifecycle: purpose setting, strategy development, training and development, and deployment and management. Each phase is underpinned by a governance framework that mandates oversight by a chief privacy officer.
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The scope of the guidelines is broad, covering various generative AI applications, including commercial API-based LLMs, fine-tuned open-source models, and entirely self-developed systems. They offer detailed advice on ensuring lawful data use, implementing multi-layered safeguards, and protecting user rights. The PIPC has indicated that these guidelines are informed by actual enforcement cases and policy experience, and will be subject to regular updates to keep pace with rapid technological advancements and regulatory changes.
