South Korea is wary of China’s electric vehicles, which are “being accused of” vulnerability to cyber assaults and long-distance surveillance.
A Korea Times editorial asserts that South Koreans already have a couple of reasons to resist Chinese imports. So is the likelihood that the vehicles will spy on owners a third and disabling strike against BYD, the company that wants to send its cars to South Korea? Even though these vehicles are cheaper than comparable Korean models (“Korea’s porous digital border,” February 12, 2025)?
Not if the imports are allowed.
The price range for the Chinese EV model is between the low to mid-30 million won ($26,900), nearly 10 million won cheaper than similar Korean SUV models. [Ten million won is almost $7,000 USD.]
It remains uncertain whether BYD’s ambitious plan to enter the Korean market will succeed. To do so, the Chinese EV maker will need to overcome two psychological obstacles. First, Koreans generally harbor a deep-seated distrust of products manufactured in China. Second, Korean consumers are known to prefer domestic brands over imports. These barriers are especially challenging for a Chinese firm.
Concerns over security risks, which have been raised recently, have cast further doubt on the future of BYD vehicles in the Korean market.
In a recent media interview, Lim Jong-in, a professor emeritus at Korea University, expressed concerns that Chinese vehicles—similar to Huawei products—could contain backdoors that allow the Chinese government to collect or access sensitive data about Korean drivers and their families. He urged the South Korean government to thoroughly assess any security risks posed by Chinese vehicles to prevent them from becoming conduits for cyber threats originating from China….
Despite being one of the most targeted countries by cyberattacks, both the government and the National Assembly have been notoriously slow to address these threats.
Not to worry, says BYD Korea: it would never share any of the data it collects with is offices in China.
Such assurances are not comforting. Chinese law requires Chinese companies to “support, assist, and cooperate with” the Chinese state’s intelligence work and to keep quiet about it. Even apart from any explicit legal provisions, no Chinese firm is in a position to tell the Chinese government anything but “How high?” when the government tells it to jump.
Also see:
StoptheCCP.org: United States and China Versus Gas-Powered Cars
