SEOUL, South Korea, June 20, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced that Hana SK Card, one of South Korea's credit card companies, has engaged IBM to develop and implement a sophisticated security system to help ensure protection of sensitive data, including customer personal information. Using database encryption and access control solutions, the system will be able to help recognize and prevent potential malicious activities, to create a more secure environment for customers. IBM was selected as the preferred partner over Oracle and is responsible for providing the core technology for this project.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090416/IBMLOGO )

Hana SK Card is a joint venture between Hana Financial Group and SK Telecom. Established in 2009, Hana SK Card has established itself as one of South Korea's top five credit card companies within three years of operation. Hana SK Card decided to partner with IBM due to its strong industry experience and deep technology expertise.

"At Hana SK Card, ensuring customer safety and security is a prime focus. It was important for us to strengthen our security system and data safety standards to comply with government regulatory norms and enhance customer trust," said Junyoung Song, Information Planning chief at Hana SK Card. "As one of the first to implement an integrated security architecture system, we have reinforced our ability to provide the highest levels of services to our customers."

South Korea recently implemented a new privacy policy which makes it mandatory for companies to protect customer personal information. Hence, Hana SK Card opted for a sophisticated data encryption solution designed to protect against most<s> </s>information misuse that occurs through database loss, leakage or misappropriation.

The encryption system will be deployed throughout Hana SK Card's IT network, in addition to its core system, and is believed to be one of the first implementation of its kind in Korea's financial services sector. By building the security solutions based on database encryption and user access control, Hana SK Card is able to further strengthen its security system and maintain its continued focus on the safe storage of its clients' personal information.

"IBM has been working with financial services companies across the world to create robust and intelligent security systems. Ensuring customer privacy is becoming increasingly important and companies need to ensure prevention of any potential misuse," said Nam-Kyeou Kim, executive, Integrated Technology Service, Global Technology Services, IBM Korea. "We are excited to help Hana SK Card build a strong system which is based on global standards, but also is designed to adhere to local requirements."

About IBM
For more information on IBM, please visit: www.ibm.com/services

About Hana SK Card
Hana SK Card is a joint venture between Hana Financial Group and SK Telecom. One of the top five credit card companies in South Korea, Hana SK Card was founded in 2009.

Media Contacts
Darcy Hansen
IBM Communications
hansenda@us.ibm.com
917-472-3692

Myunghee Son
Media Relations, IBM Korea
mhson@kr.ibm.com
82-2-3781-4681

Supriyaranjan Kar
Media Relations, IBM Growth Markets
supriya.kar@in.ibm.com
91-9717443337

SOURCE IBM Corp.