Researchers: SKorean child-monitoring app has security flaws


              In this May 15, 2015 file photo, a promotional banner of mobile apps that block harmful contents, is posted on the door at a mobile store in Seoul, South Korea. The banner reads: "Young smartphone users, you must install apps that block harmful content." A South Korean child-monitoring smartphone app that was removed from the market in 2015 after it was found to be riddled with security holes has been reissued under a new name and puts children at risk, researchers said Monday, Sept. 11, 2017. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)
In this May 15, 2015 file photo, a promotional banner of mobile apps that block harmful contents, is posted on the door at a mobile store in Seoul, South Korea. The banner reads: "Young smartphone users, you must install apps that block harmful content." A South Korean child-monitoring smartphone app that was removed from the market in 2015 after it was found to be riddled with security holes has been reissued under a new name and puts children at risk, researchers said Monday, Sept. 11, 2017. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Researchers say a South Korean child-monitoring smartphone app that was removed from the market in 2015 after it was found to be riddled with security flaws has been reissued under a new name and still puts children at risk.

The app "Cyber Security Zone" is part of efforts to control cellphone use by young people. Parents are required by South Korean law to install monitoring software on children's smartphones.

The internet watchdog Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto said the app is almost identical to a previous system that left children's information vulnerable to hackers. Both were promoted by the industry group for South Korean cellphone service providers.

The industry group denied the two systems are the same and rejected charges that security for "Cyber Security Zone" was inadequate.

Upcoming Events