On April 23, CNMO learned from foreign media that the South Korean military may ban the use of iPhones due to security concerns and switch to Samsung mobile phones.
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According to reports, the South Korean military appears to be considering a total ban on iPhones, citing security concerns, a decision made after a joint meeting of army, navy and air force headquarters. If implemented, all military headquarters and subordinate units will ban the use of iPhones. Android phones, especially those made by Samsung, a local South Korean company, will continue to be used normally.
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According to South Korean media reports, the ban stems from concerns that the recordings could leak sensitive information. A document published on the internal network of the South Korean Air Force Headquarters clearly mentions that "there will be a total ban on bringing iPhones into the country." The document further mentions that a review is underway at headquarters to extend the ban to all subordinate units. It is reported that the military personnel at the headquarters alone are estimated at around 10,000 people. If the ban is extended to all troops, it will mean that nearly 500,000 military personnel will be banned from using iPhones for official communications.
According to foreign media, the main concern of the South Korean military is not because the iPhone has inherent security flaws, but because it does not meet the restrictions imposed by "Defense Mobile Security", which is a mobile device management application that military personnel must install on their devices.
Once this app is activated, it restricts many features of the smartphone, such as camera, Wi-Fi, microphone, tethering, and more. However, Apple doesn't allow third-party apps to control the iPhone's native features other than the camera, so the app can't restrict the iPhone's USB, microphone, tethering, and other features.
It is reported that this security application was released by the South Korean Ministry of Defense in 2013 to reduce the possibility of leakage of classified information at the headquarters. Initially only required for officials and public officials working in the Ministry, but it was later extended to all military personnel.
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The report points out that Android phones do not have restrictions to set such feature controls, which is why Samsung devices can be used normally even if the iPhone is banned. The iPhone ban is reportedly being piloted and is expected to be more widely implemented in the coming months.