SK Telecom (SKT) is offering free SIM card replacements to 23 million customers to address security concerns after a cyber incident exposed customer USIM data.
The announcement was made by SK Telecom CEO Yoo Young-sang during a press briefing on customer information protection at the company’s Seoul headquarters.
Acknowledging the seriousness of the situation, Yoo said, “I sincerely apologize to customers who have trusted and used SK Telecom, and to society for the great inconvenience and concern we have caused. We will implement additional measures to provide free SIM card replacement to all SK Telecom customers.”
This large-scale effort is intended to reduce customer anxiety and strengthen protections. It follows SKT’s earlier roll-out of a ‘SIM Protection Service’ and improvements to its Fraud Detection System (FDS), designed to detect and block unauthorized or abnormal authentication attempts that could indicate illegal SIM duplication or account takeovers.
Beginning April 28, SKT customers can request a free replacement physical SIM card or eSIM. Replacements will be available nationwide at SKT’s T World retail stores and airport roaming centers.
Eligibility includes all mobile subscribers who were active on the network as of midnight on April 18. The offer is limited to one replacement per eligible customer and excludes certain devices such as some smartwatches and children’s phones.
Anticipating high demand at launch, SKT advised that customers who cannot receive a same-day replacement due to queues may reserve a time at their chosen store for a later visit. The company also cautioned that SIM exchanges at airport locations may require additional time, and customers should plan accordingly.
SKT will also refund customers who already paid for a new SIM card between April 19 and 27, applying the free replacement policy retroactively to those cases.
The initiative covers customers of Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) that use SKT’s network infrastructure. Each MVNO partner will announce its own timeline and procedures for implementing the replacement program for its subscribers.
SIM replacements part of a layered security approach from SK Telecom
SK Telecom says the free SIM replacement program, combined with its existing and enhanced security measures, will offer stronger protection for customer data. The company emphasized that its upgraded FDS, together with the ‘SIM Protection Service’—which it describes as providing an effect similar to physical SIM replacement—adds multiple layers of defense.
Following the cyber incident that triggered these actions, SKT raised the criteria for blocking abnormal authentication attempts “to the highest level” to prevent illegal SIM duplication. The company also increased continuous, real-time security monitoring.
SKT reported a surge in interest for its ‘SIM Protection Service’: 2.06 million new subscribers enrolled in the free service between April 22 and 24, bringing the total to 2.4 million users as of midnight on April 25.
SK Telecom plans to further enhance the ‘SIM Protection Service’, including extending its availability when customers are roaming internationally.
“SK Telecom places the highest priority on customer trust, and we will further strengthen our security systems and establish measures to protect customer information,” Yoo said. “Through this incident, we will be reborn as a company that returns to basics and takes responsibility.”
(Image credit: SK Telecom)
See also: UK announces first ban in Europe on SIM farms
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