More than 60% of complaints regarding harmful content related to artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots are still under review by the Broadcasting and Communications Review Committee.
According to data obtained by Kim Seon-min, a member of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information, Broadcasting and Communications Committee, as of September 21, 76 out of 119 complaints related to AI chatbot sites were marked as 'under review.' This represents 63.9% of the total complaints. Only 40 complaints were processed, and just three were resolved.
The oldest complaint dates back to May 15, 2025, concerning BabyChat, which has remained under review for 494 days.
In terms of complaint types, 32 were related to obscene or suggestive content, followed by 23 regarding the sexual objectification and exploitation of child and youth characters, and 22 concerning inadequate age verification and youth protection.
By site, BabyChat had 30 complaints, BoriChat had 18, and Zeta had 17. All three sites offer services that allow users to interact with AI characters, which have gained significant popularity among youth. However, concerns about excessive reliance on chatbots and the distribution of provocative content have been consistently raised.
Current regulations state that results must be communicated to applicants within 10 days of a review decision. However, there are no specific deadlines for processing complaints from submission to review decision, which poses a problem.
The Broadcasting and Communications Review Committee explained that the delay in processing is partly due to a shortage of staff, with only one employee handling youth-related harmful content complaints.
Kim stated, "While complaints regarding the protection of children and youth remain in review for over a year, we cannot leave youth protection solely to the self-regulation of service providers. The committee must establish processing deadlines and criteria for extensions, and clearly inform the reasons for delays and expected resolution dates for long-standing complaints."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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