Hanky- KCC to remove Active X from Korean websites

[anichion]

The Hanky (Hankyoreh) posted this update today.
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_business/515255.html

he government is taking active steps to eliminate the ActiveX framework, which has become synonymous with distortions in the South Korean online environment.

The Korea Communications Commission announced Tuesday that it plans to investigate and report on the use of ActiveX at 100 major internet sites in an effort to promote online convenience and web service competitiveness. The plan is for quarterly investigations and reports, beginning with an initial report in March of this year, with the number of sites under examination to be expanded from the first 100 to include all 285 public institution web sites.

ActiveX is a framework used for opening files and playing music and videos that only operates with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser. It has been widely used in South Korean web sites because of its ease of development, but does not work in other browsers because it does not follow the standard. Its weak security has also led to its use in distributed denial of service attacks. ActiveX does not operate at all on smartphones and other mobile devices.

Active X appears on practically every website here. Getting rid of the software will speed up and streamline websites here.

Maybe at last the PC rooms will update all their computers from IE 6.1 and leave the stone age for good, though PC rooms will still be full of cave men. 

[steveperry]

I've seen newspaper articles that have said basically the same thing ever since I arrived in Korea 7 years ago. Lots of plans, no actions.

I would love for them to actually do it this time, but I won't believe it until I see it.

[Songwon]

Please, please, please, please, please, please...

[Paul]

Doesn't the banking system rely on Active X to fuel SEED? Which in turn they're unwilling to let go of because they want to justify the (especially back then) considerable expense it cost the government over a perceived injustice handed to Korea by Clinton delaying the release of the encryption protocols the rest of the world uses? In other words, are we enduring this rubbish for a select few to save face?

[anichion]

Yeah, the banking and financial websites are heavy with Active X, but given the hacking scandals, slowness, and the number of smartphone/tablet users in the country, they have to upgrade and begin removing Active X.

While the KCC is at it, I wonder if I can get them to talk to KORAIL about restoring online ticket registration on the English section again. I remember being able to do it for a few years and then 2 years ago, it stopped allowing website reservation.

[Sticks]

Good riddance, I hate going to Korean sites for this very reason, plus their webpages aren't the shining beacon of streamlined web graphics standards.

@anichion:
I've been using Korail's online ticket registration on their Korean section for over a year now without problems, you can even pick your type of seating. I'd be more than happy to post up a rough guide  if you (or anyone else) wants.

[anichion]

I don't need it atm, but post it anyway, for those that would want to learn how in the near future.

[Davox]

Yeah, the banking and financial websites are heavy with Active X, but given the hacking scandals, slowness, and the number of smartphone/tablet users in the country, they have to upgrade and begin removing Active X.

I think the smartphone/tablet argument may be the one that finally wins out against ActiveX.  Lots of Koreans own tablets now, there's an actual market for usable sites on them.   And once you make them just as usable on a tablet, suddenly you have a site that does the same things but without the security disaster that is ActiveX.

And then maybe Korean computers won't all be infected with viruses anymore.

[Paul]

And then maybe Korean computers won't all be infected with viruses anymore.

Not until the schools stop teaching that Cholsu Ahn invented the virus scanner. Sorry, "vaccine". Similar problem, but different.

[bork]

Doesn't the banking system rely on Active X to fuel SEED? Which in turn they're unwilling to let go of because they want to justify the (especially back then) considerable expense it cost the government over a perceived injustice handed to Korea by Clinton delaying the release of the encryption protocols the rest of the world uses? In other words, are we enduring this rubbish for a select few to save face?

This is very true but it will also be a mammoth of a task to update the whole network of Korean websites and online financial services. 

[C.Dennis]

This is very true but it will also be a mammoth of a task to update the whole network of Korean websites and online financial services.

Actually, it's less difficult than maintaining their current ActiveX paradigm (IMO).

While the task itself is huge due to the number of websites that need to be changed over, the actual security side of it is much less demanding. Modern secure website and server construction and maintenance is a well-documented field. It is not difficult (for someone in this profession) to implement a secure solution.

My guess is that Korea has nobody who is up to date on modern web security (ie, not-doing-it-the-Korean-way) to make the change a fast or easy one.