Lee Jun-seok, the presidential candidate of the minor conservative New Reform Party, on Friday pledged to designate Busan as a special data zone with enhanced security measures to boost South Korea’s digital competitiveness.

Lee stressed the need for secure zones where domestic tech companies — many of which currently rely on foreign cloud services — can safely store their data. He cited Busan’s robust electricity supply and communications infrastructure as key advantages.

Under his proposals, even when data is submitted to prosecutors under a warrant, its review or duplication would require approval from an independent committee. Access by foreign governments or investigative agencies would also be allowed only through formal procedures.