[Edaily Reporter Yun Junghoon ] It has been confirmed thatLG Uplus(032640)included details of awards that had been revoked by the government in its recently disclosed Sustainability Management Report (ESG Report).

Amid allegations that the company re-installed and disposed of relevant servers during an investigation into suspected personal data leaks—a matter that even led to a referral for criminal investigation—critics are pointing out that the verification process for the official report detailing the company’s information security performance was also inadequate.

On the 30th, the Personal Information Protection Commission resolved to refer LG Uplus to investigative authorities on charges of obstruction of official duties under the Criminal Code for reinstalling the server operating system (OS) and disposing of servers prior to the launch of an investigation into allegations of a personal information leak.

According to the Commission’s investigation, LG Uplus reinstalled the OS on the relevant servers and disposed of some of them last year after the U.S. security magazine *Phrack* reported indications of a data breach involving its Advanced Password Protection Manager (APPM) system. The Commission determined that this caused significant difficulties in determining whether a data breach had occurred and, if so, the circumstances surrounding it.

While LG Uplus is under investigation on suspicion of obstructing the investigation into the personal information leak, its recently published Sustainability Report still included a record of an information security award that had already been revoked.

On page 152 of the Sustainability Report published by LG Uplus earlier this month, under the section titled “Awards and Certifications,” it states that the company received the Minister of Science and ICT Daesang at the “24th Information Security Awards” hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT. The report even added the description that this was “the only top award won by a domestic mobile carrier.”

However, LG Uplus did not actually receive the award. Although the company publicized its expected win at the Information Security Awards last August, the award was subsequently revoked following a government investigation into hacking allegations. This was in accordance with a regulation by the Ministry’s screening committee stating that “awards may be revoked in cases that cause social controversy.” At the actual awards ceremony, KB Kookmin Bank received the Daesang.

A sustainability report is an official document through which a company informs stakeholders—including shareholders and investors—of its performance and risk factors in the areas of environment, social responsibility, and governance (ESG). Critics point out that the fact that a government award—which had already been revoked—was listed as a major achievement indicates that the fact-checking and internal verification procedures during the report’s preparation did not function properly.

An LG Uplus official stated, “The award was included in the report at the time of its preparation, and it was not corrected during the review process after the award was revoked,” adding, “We will make our review procedures even more thorough to ensure that the same problem does not recur in the future.”