▲ AI PRISM* Personalized Economic Briefing
* Editor's note: AI PRISM (Personalized Report & Insight Summarizing Media) is an artificial intelligence-based personalized news recommendation and summary service developed with support from the Korea Press Foundation. It selects and provides six tailored news items for each reader type.
[Key Issue Briefing]
■ Abuse of discretionary working-hours system, 430 million won in unpaid wages uncovered: IICOMBINED, the operator of eyewear brand Gentle Monster, failed to pay 430 million won in night and holiday work allowances to 464 employees and abused the discretionary working-hours system, according to a planned inspection by the Ministry of Employment and Labor. With unpaid wages owed mainly to former employees still unresolved, the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee is discussing whether to summon the chief executive as a witness at its parliamentary audit.
■ AI-automated hacking hits financial sector: Five major banks, including KB Kookmin, Hana, Shinhan Bank and Busan Bank, were breached in a series of attacks using AI-based automated hacking tools, leading to successive leaks of customer information. Son Kyu-sik, a professor of hacking and security at Hanyang Cyber University, said much of the work of preparing and operating attack tools can now be automated through AI, and predicted a sharp rise in demand for AI specialists in finance and security.
■ K-beauty and robotics emerge as growth industries: Cosmetics exports for the first three quarters of this year rose 31.1% from a year earlier to $11.1 billion, a record high, while Boston Dynamics unveiled a new robotic hand for its humanoid robot Atlas ahead of its deployment on Hyundai Motor production lines in 2028. Demand for specialized technical workers is expanding rapidly in both industries, analysts said.
[News of Interest to University Students and Job Seekers]
Key points: A planned inspection by the Ministry of Employment and Labor found that IICOMBINED failed to pay 430 million won in night and holiday work allowances to 464 employees and violated overtime rules in 115 cases. The company abused the discretionary working-hours system by requiring work beyond agreed hours without paying additional allowances, and cases were also confirmed in which workers less than a year past childbirth were ordered to work overtime beyond legal limits. With back wages owed mainly to former employees still unresolved, some current and former designers claim retroactive payments amounted to only a few thousand to tens of thousands of won. The National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee is discussing whether to summon Chief Executive Kim Han-kook as a witness at this month's parliamentary audit, and observers say job seekers should examine employment contract terms closely before joining a company.
2. After Shinhan, KB, Hana and Busan Banks Follow... AI Hacking Phobia
Key points: Customer personal information was leaked through external hacking at KB Kookmin Bank, Hana Bank and Busan Bank, and Woori Bank and NH NongHyup Bank were also confirmed to have been targeted. Traces of ARTEX AI, an AI-based automated attack tool, were found in the Shinhan Bank incident, and Moon Jong-hyun, head of the Genians Security Center, said there was reasonable suspicion that AI-based attack automation tools had been used. With attacks concentrated in a specific period, some in the industry speculate that a single group was behind them. As the National Police Agency's cyber terror response investigation unit has launched preliminary inquiries into the Shinhan, KB Kookmin, Hana and Busan Bank cases, demand for AI security roles in the financial sector is expected to surge.
3. Tightening Nuts and Drilling Holes... Atlas Gets 'Four Fingers'
Key points: Boston Dynamics unveiled for the first time a new robotic hand to be mounted on its humanoid robot Atlas. Based on four fingers, the new hand achieves 13 degrees of freedom, about double the seven degrees of the previous version, and performed precision tasks such as operating an electric drill, tightening nuts and spinning drumsticks with ease. On the 30th of last month, Boston Dynamics opened the Robotics Metaplant Application Center (RMAC) inside HMGMA in the U.S. state of Georgia and began training for deployment on production lines. Atlas will first be assigned to parts arrangement work at Hyundai Motor Group's U.S. production facilities in 2028, then expand into parts assembly processes from 2030, with demand for technical workers in the robotics industry expected to grow as well.
4. K-Beauty Exports Hit $11.1 Billion in Nine Months... Close to Last Year's Full-Year Total
Key points: Cosmetics exports for the first three quarters of this year reached $11.1 billion, up 31.1% from a year earlier and a record high for a nine-month period, according to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. The figure represents about 97% of last year's full-year exports of $11.42 billion, achieved in just nine months, with the U.S. market driving the growth. Exports to the U.S. from January to September rose 40.6% from a year earlier to $2.35 billion, lifting the country's share to 21.1%, while China's share fell to 14.2% in a rapid reshaping of the export landscape. Exports of skincare products surged 45.1% to $8.72 billion, leading the overall growth, and analysts say the job market in the cosmetics sector is expanding as the industry's global reach accelerates.
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▶Read the full article: September Consumer Inflation Climbs Into the 2% Range... Core Inflation Up 2.8%, Highest This Year
