The Korea Fair Trade Commission (the “KFTC”) has released a draft amendment (the “Amendment”) to the Review Guidelines on Deceptive Labeling and Advertising for public comments from June 19 to July 9, 2025. The Amendment aims to expand the scope of conduct involving the concealment or omission of material information that could significantly influence consumer purchasing decisions. This initiative seeks to enhance predictability for businesses and ensure consistency in enforcement.
The key elements of the Amendment are as follows:
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Prohibition of Concealment or Omission of Material Safety Information |
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Advertising humidifier disinfectants as using “harmless antibacterial agents” or “safe ingredients for the human body,” while concealing or omitting that they contain toxic substances not objectively verified for safety.
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Advertising that a vehicle received a “top safety rating” in overseas evaluations, while concealing or omitting that the domestic version differs from the overseas model and does not meet the same safety criteria.
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Advertising “99% virus removal” performance for air purifiers, while concealing or omitting that test results were obtained under limited experimental conditions significantly different from actual use environments.
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Prohibition of Concealment or Omission of Paid Endorsements or Recommendations |
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A marketing agency compensating influencers to promote products without disclosing the financial relationship.
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An employee of the advertiser posting product recommendations on major online communities without revealing their employment status.
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An advertiser using its official social media account to promote its own products, while presenting such promotion as third-party endorsements.
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3. |
Other Notable Amendments |
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Advertising data speeds achievable only under specific technical conditions, while concealing or omitting that such speeds cannot be guaranteed in ordinary usage.
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Advertising claims such as “No. 1 test prep book,” “No. 1 in sales,” or “No. 1 in student enrollment,” while concealing or omitting material information by making the basis of these claims difficult for consumers to verify.
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Advertising an apartment with a lump-sum deposit-only lease (Jeonse-type) with no monthly rent, while concealing or omitting that monthly rent will be charged starting from the second year of residence.
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Advertising online content with terms such as “Offer ends today” or countdown timers, while concealing or omitting that the same offer remains available under identical conditions even after the indicated period.
The KFTC will collect comments from stakeholders until July 9, 2025, finalize and implement the Amendment after a resolution by the plenary session.
Once the Amendment is finalized and implemented, businesses will be required to clearly disclose material safety information and economic relationships in their advertising. Accordingly, companies are advised to carefully review their existing marketing and advertising content to ensure consistency with the Amendment’s intent and proactively make revisions as necessary.
