Beyond Mir City
During his by-election campaign, Lee Yun-hyeok had once made the following promise:
“Our country is no longer an IT powerhouse; we have fallen far behind in the AI era. I will remodel the old municipal library in Central-dong and open it to the ambitious developers of Pangyo. By designating a regulatory sandbox and securing various budgets, we will pursue aggressive R&D.”
This policy, along with his agricultural revitalization policy and high-tech manufacturing promotion, was one of the three pillars of Yun-hyeok’s economic strategy.
If that was the case...
‘Should I do them together this time?’
Along with the development of the integrated app, that is.
It could serve as a suitable justification for designating the sandbox. In any case, securing the cooperation of various government ministries was essential for the app's development.
For instance, to utilize information regarding elementary, middle, and high schools, the cooperation of the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education would be indispensable.
Therefore...
“Hyeon-seo, could you set up some meetings for me?”
“Yes, sir. With whom?”
“The Minister of Science and ICT, the Minister of SMEs and Startups, the Minister of the Interior and Safety, the Minister of Health and Welfare, the Chairperson of the Personal Information Protection Commission, the Superintendent of the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, and the Administrator of the Public Procurement Service.”
“...”
Jo Hyeon-seo’s face went completely blank at the sudden list of high-ranking officials.
“Are you planning to meet them in person, Mayor...?”
“That’s right. But if I just ask to meet out of the blue, they’ll probably draw the line and tell me to send an official letter.”
It was rather difficult for the head of a basic local government to meet a minister. From the ministers' perspective, they worried about unnecessary gossip surrounding the projects they were promoting, and they had little to gain from meeting a basic local government leader who wasn't even a provincial governor. Thus, the key was to hook them with the subject matter.
“Tell them that Mir City is promoting a local innovation policy related to the low birth rate, and we need cooperation from central ministries regarding administrative network integration, personal information inquiries, educational facility information integration, and open-source system reform.”
If the agenda was that compelling, they would surely show interest.
“What kind of person is this...?”
Lee Seong-yeol, the Minister of Science and ICT, felt utterly bewildered.
The leader of a city with a population of barely 490,000 had suddenly requested a meeting.
Normally, such a request would have been filtered out by the chief of staff.
“We heard he contacted several ministries, including the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education. He says cooperation from each ministry is necessary to promote a local innovation policy related to the low birth rate.”
At this point, his curiosity was piqued.
“I reported this to you because it seemed unusual, Minister. Should I just tell him to send an official letter?”
“No.”
Minister Lee Seong-yeol wanted to find out for himself.
From the perspective of central politics, basic local government heads were small fry. Consequently, those local leaders also avoided meeting cabinet members because they found it intimidating.
Yet, this mayor had contacted not just the Minister of Science and ICT, but also the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the Ministry of Health and Welfare...
Didn't this look like the Blue House summoning a cabinet meeting? Where on earth did a basic local government head get this kind of audacity?
Of course, unlike the Blue House, the Mayor of Mir City lacked the authority to gather them all in one place, so he had to run around and meet them one by one.
“Wait. The Mayor of Mir City...?”
Minister Lee Seong-yeol suddenly recalled where he had heard that name before.
During the last regular cabinet meeting, the Minister of SMEs and Startups had reported that Mir City had been selected as the top local government in the specialized regional industry contest.
“Set up the meeting.”
Lee Seong-yeol was highly intrigued.
Yun-hyeok arrived the following evening at eight o'clock. After thanking the minister for making time right before leaving work, he got straight to the point.
“Minister, Mir City is planning to develop an integrated childbirth and childcare app. We need the cooperation of the Ministry of Science and ICT in this process.”
“What do you need?”
“We would like to designate a sandbox in the area of the old municipal library in Central-dong, Mir City, to temporarily suspend certain technical and industrial regulations.”
“What regulations are you referring to?”
“Regulations on open source. It's to facilitate app development.”
There were several bottlenecks hindering the development of the domestic AI industry, and among them, open-source regulations were particularly restrictive.
Open source referred to software made public so that anyone could use, modify, and share it for free—things like Linux or TensorFlow.
However, products made with these were rarely accepted by public institutions.
Why?
Because public institutions preferred to pay for products rather than use them for free.
One might wonder what kind of self-defeating, foolish logic this was, but it was the reality. The reason boiled down to the issue of liability.
If a problem arose while using free Linux, the public institution had to take full responsibility. But if a problem arose while using Windows, which they paid for, they could hold Microsoft accountable.
In short, it made life easier for politicians and civil servants.
The problem, however, was that open source had grown at an incredible speed due to its high degree of freedom, to the point where it now surpassed foreign commercial products. Furthermore, startups preferred open source because they lacked capital.
So, startups wanted to build products using open source and supply them to government agencies, but the Public Procurement Service would block them.
Their reasoning was that because it was made with open source, it couldn't be trusted, and thus they wouldn't accept it.
Then couldn't they just use it in the private market instead of public institutions?
That was only half-correct. There was an even bigger problem.
To train AI, data was ultimately required. And high-quality data was held far more by the public sector than the private sector. For example, to create an edutech AI, one would need records of students' academic achievement evaluations and attendance. Naturally, no private entity possessed such comprehensive information, whereas the Office of Education held high-quality data.
So, what happened when an underfunded startup with ambitious plans to create an AI tutor contacted the Office of Education?
“Since you are building this with open source, we cannot provide the data due to security concerns.”
They would receive that exact response, and that would be the end of it.
“Please designate a sandbox and lift those regulations.”
“Mayor, I understand the necessity, but the government must approach this cautiously. Much of open source is unverified in terms of security, and the division of responsibility is unclear. The government cannot put citizens' data at security risk.”
“We've controlled personal information so strictly all this time, but I don't think it has actually been protected very well.”
“...”
“Isn't our citizens' personal information practically public property in China anyway? What is the point of a law that protects Koreans' personal information only to prevent Koreans themselves from using it?”
Lee Seong-yeol couldn't help but laugh at the painfully accurate point.
“I admit that. But Mayor, even so, the government cannot openly expose it to security risks.”
“I will take responsibility for security in four ways.”
“How?”
“First, we will introduce a code verification system and submit an SBOM. Second, we will undergo penetration testing through a private security consulting firm. Third, we will require the companies to sign maintenance liability contracts for products coming out of the designated sandbox zone. Finally, since this app will be linked with Mir City's internal network, we will establish a security monitoring system by linking API communication log monitoring with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Integrated Security Control Center.”
Lee Seong-yeol adjusted his posture.
The response had far exceeded his expectations.
“Mayor... do you know what an SBOM is?”
“Isn't it a comprehensive document that records what open-source components a software is made of, including the source and version of the code, license information, and vulnerabilities?”
“...”
“And for the penetration testing, we will have the security consulting firm submit a report checking vulnerabilities based on the OWASP Top 10. We will restrict the app's release unless it receives a security level of 'Good' or higher.”
“Do you also know what OWASP is...?”
“As open source expands, security is naturally a major issue abroad as well, and OWASP is the largest organization in the security industry that produces open-source web application security guidelines. It identifies vulnerabilities like injection, broken authentication and session management, cross-site scripting, and broken access control.”
What on earth was this?
Minister Lee Seong-yeol was flabbergasted.
As a former developer himself, he understood these terms, but he had never met a politician who spoke like this. Had this man majored in security before entering politics?
“Minister.”
Yun-hyeok leaned toward him.
“You know this as well, Minister. You cannot go against the flow of the times. Eventually, Korea will have to accept open source. We are already lagging far behind in AI and data-driven industries. We were once an IT powerhouse, but now our ecosystem is severely damaged. Isn't restoring it the job of the Ministry of Science and ICT?”
Yun-hyeok continued.
“Mir City will be the testbed. Support us. Watch how perfectly we build this app and how securely we handle safety. Let this project open the floodgates for the restoration of our domestic ICT ecosystem.”
Lee Seong-yeol recalled the cabinet meeting once more. At the time, Minister An Jae-gyeong had said, “The Mayor of Mir City is highly capable.”
But this wasn't just a matter of being 'highly capable,' was it?
The passion and tenacity to seek out ministers despite being a mere basic local government head. And the precise awareness of the problem coupled with professional expertise.
“To go this far just to develop a single app... What is your reason for doing this?”
Yun-hyeok reacted as if the answer was obvious.
“Because it's necessary...?”
He succeeded.
He had secured the cooperation of Minister Lee Seong-yeol.
In truth, since the Minister of Science and ICT was an expert, Yun-hyeok had anticipated that he would be well aware of open-source trends and would join in if promised sufficient security.
And now, things would proceed much more smoothly. After all, if the Minister of Science and ICT was cooperating on the app's development, other ministers would view it favorably as well.
Starting with Song Jae-seop, the Minister of the Interior and Safety.
“Hello, Minister. We would like to integrate the electronic civil service API into the local app we are developing. We aren't pulling the administrative network itself; we just want the app to call Minwon24 internally. However, we want to clean up the interface. We want to avoid the hassle of opening web pages or having to log in twice. And I believe this is also highly necessary for you, Minister. After all, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety has tried several times during this administration to create a successful case of local government innovation. There hasn't been a powerful result yet, but Mir City will deliver that result for you.”
Success!
Next was Yun Hae-seo, the Minister of Health and Welfare.
“Pleasure to meet you, Minister. I believe the Ministry of Health and Welfare views the low birth rate as a serious national crisis. I also know you plan to increase various policies related to it in the future. There needs to be a channel through which these policies can be delivered to citizens more easily. The numerous existing apps don't integrate because their related organizations are all different, and they are practically useless due to difficult follow-up management. You must also deeply feel the need for an integrated app that encompasses childbirth and childcare policies as well as facility information. We will build it. Watch how the app operates in Mir City. After that, whenever you deem it necessary, Mir City will cooperate in expanding the app nationwide.”
Success!
Next was Im Hae-in, the Chairperson of the Personal Information Protection Commission.
“Chairperson, I believe that an information subject checking their own medical records after undergoing identity verification falls under the right of inquiry under the Personal Information Protection Act, so there is no illegality. If the city hall app is outsourced, it could be considered a third-party provision in itself, but we will keep the app's server in the city hall's data center and manage it directly without outsourcing. The city will develop the UI, and the data will only be called.”
Success!
Following that, once he swept through An Jae-gyeong, the Minister of SMEs and Startups who was already highly favorable toward him, the Gyeonggi Education Superintendent, and the Administrator of the Public Procurement Service, it would be complete.
Strike while the iron is hot.
He immediately announced the signing of the MOU.
Article 1 (Purpose)
This agreement aims to establish a cooperative system between relevant central ministries and agencies for the successful execution of the "Integrated Childbirth and Childcare Platform Construction Project" promoted by Mir City, and to cooperate on the application of regulatory exemptions (sandboxes) for realizing MyData-based demonstration services, data linkage, and technical support.
Article 2 (Participating Institutions)
The following institutions shall participate in this agreement:
- Mir City Hall (Lead Local Government)
- Ministry of the Interior and Safety
- Ministry of Health and Welfare
- Ministry of Science and ICT
- Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education
- Personal Information Protection Commission
- Ministry of SMEs and Startups
- Public Procurement Service
Article 3 (Cooperative Projects)
1. Development and distribution of a public application (hereinafter referred to as the 'Integrated App') that integrates childcare, education, and medical information within Mir City's jurisdiction.
2. Construction of a MyData linkage system based on individual consent.
3. Designation and demonstration operation of a sandbox zone within the IT Special District around the old municipal library.
4. Public data API linkage and integration of civil services.
5. Review of the introduction and standardization of open-source-based software in public institutions.
Article 4 (Roles of Each Institution)
1. Mir City Hall: Overall project management and operation, provision of administrative network linkage infrastructure, financial execution.
2. Ministry of the Interior and Safety: Provision and linkage of birth information, resident registration copies, and electronic civil service APIs.
3. Ministry of Health and Welfare: Provision of hospital information, daycare waiting lists, and voucher system information.
4. Ministry of Science and ICT: Cooperation in sandbox operation, technical consulting, and open-source policy advice.
5. Ministry of SMEs and Startups: Attracting startup companies utilizing the Central-dong hub and linking R&D commercialization funds.
6. Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education: Linking location and operational information of kindergartens and schools.
7. Personal Information Protection Commission: Legal interpretation of MyData utilization and review of consent systems.
8. Public Procurement Service: Reviewing the possibility of conditional procurement registration for apps that have completed sandbox demonstration, and reviewing the acceptance scope of GS certification alternative reports.
Article 5 (Data Protection and Security)
All participating institutions shall strictly comply with relevant laws (Personal Information Protection Act, Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection, etc.). Data linked to the Integrated App shall be based on the consent of the information subject, and the storage and processing of data shall be managed in accordance with the information security guidelines of Mir City Hall.
Article 6 (Validity Period and Extension)
This agreement is valid for three years from the date of signing and can be extended through consultation between the parties up to one month prior to expiration. Depending on the performance of the demonstration project, a step-by-step expansion or diffusion to other local governments may be jointly reviewed.
Article 7 (Dispute Resolution)
Disputes regarding the interpretation and implementation of this agreement shall be resolved through consultation. If unavoidable, mediation by the lead institution (Mir City Hall) shall be the principle.
February 21, 2024
Choi Gwang-seop, the Mayor of Seongnam and a member of the Liberty Party, recently heard an interesting story.
Mir City had submitted a request for cooperation to the Urban Division of Seongnam City Hall. They wanted to hang banners on the public bulletin boards in Pangyo Techno Valley.
The specific details were as follows:
Mir City permits everything.
Develop your open-source-based public app in Central-dong, Mir City, right now!]
Mir City is looking for a team to develop an integrated childbirth and childcare app.
- Open-source permitted
- 1 billion won development budget secured]
Open-source, MyData, public app demonstration. Come to Central-dong, Mir City, now!]
In truth, hanging banners across different local governments was such a common occurrence that it wouldn't normally be reported up to the mayor's level.
Nevertheless, the reason this issue, which the Urban Division would typically handle on its own, had reached the mayor was political.
“Does this make any sense...?”
He had wondered what all this talk about a sandbox was, only to find out that this crazy bastard of a Mir City Mayor had signed an MOU with the heads of eight central government organizations.
Of course, it wasn't physically impossible, but how did he even think of attempting such a thing in the first place?
“The local elections are in one year and four months, Mayor. Perhaps...”
The chief of staff, who had brought this proposal to Choi Gwang-seop, said,
“This man might run for the Gyeonggi Governor election.”
To anyone looking, wasn't he a man who had already outgrown the vessel of Mir City?