South Korea Launches 2km Real-Time Stalker Tracking App for 400 Survivors
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Sep 11
South Korea Launches 2km Real-Time Stalker Tracking App for 400 Survivors
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Sep 11
Summary
About 400 stalking survivors in South Korea can now see a tagged perpetrator’s live location on a phone map once he comes within 2km, replacing text alerts that showed only distance.
At 1km, the system automatically alerts police and probation officers, who call the survivor and can dispatch staff; two control centres already process about 19,000 monitoring alerts a day.
The rollout follows rising stalking reports—up to 44,687 in 2025, triple 2021 levels—and public anger after killings including a March case in which police did not know a suspect was already being electronically tracked.
Its reach is still limited because courts rarely order tags in stalking cases: police sought 1,187 over 2024-2025 and judges approved 427, while advocates warn the app could shift too much safety burden onto victims.