National Secretary

A personalized administrative information notification service operated by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, informing users of various government benefits and deadlines via messengers such as

National Secretary

Overview

National Secretary (국민비서) is a personalized administrative information notification service operated by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety (행정안전부) and the National Information Society Agency (NIA; 한국지능정보사회진흥원). Through mobile messengers that people frequently use, such as KakaoTalk, Naver TalkTalk, and Toss, users can receive real-time guidance on government benefits, application deadlines, eligibility changes, and disaster information. It is linked with Government24 and various other public systems and is evaluated as a representative service of 'digital government' that helps integrate and manage scattered administrative information in one place.

Main Content

Background and History

In the past, each ministry and local government relied separately on text messages, mail, and website notices to deliver administrative information. As a result, the problem of 'shadow regulation' was continuously raised, in which citizens were unaware of benefits applicable to them or missed application deadlines. To resolve this gap in information accessibility, the government began a pilot National Secretary service in April 2020 and subsequently expanded target institutions and notification items in stages. During the COVID-19 response, vaccine schedules, quarantine notices, and disaster relief fund guidance were delivered quickly, greatly raising awareness of the service.

Main Services

Notifications provided by National Secretary are largely divided into several categories. First, administrative information notifications provide personalized guidance on health insurance eligibility changes, vehicle inspection timing, tax payment deadlines, and applications for various welfare benefits. Second, policy and benefit notifications identify and guide items among government support programs that match users' conditions. Third, disaster and safety notifications deliver information directly related to life, such as weather alerts, emergency disaster text messages, and evacuation guidance. In addition, it provides identity verification, links to civil service applications, and shortcuts to certificate issuance pages.

How to Use and Features

Users can select a messenger to receive notifications on the National Secretary website or Government24 and go through procedures for areas of interest and consent to the use of personal information. The biggest advantage is that notifications can be received through existing messengers without installing a separate app. Notification messages are designed not to stop at simple guidance but to include links to actual application pages, so that the flow continues from checking information to processing civil service requests.

Linked Systems

National Secretary is linked with Government24, the Administrative Information Shared Use System, Bokjiro, the National Health Insurance Service, the National Tax Service Hometax, and local government civil service systems. The core technology is to use data held by each institution to select only the information applicable to the user; for personal information protection, it uses only minimal information and guarantees the right to withdraw consent.

Latest Trends

In 2024-2025, National Secretary is evolving beyond simple notifications into 'proactive and active services.' Features using generative AI to easily explain complex administrative terminology or provide customized Q&A tailored to users' situations are being introduced on a pilot basis. In addition, the method of managing notifications scattered across multiple messengers at once through a dedicated National Secretary app is also expanding. Customized notifications and screen accessibility improvements for information-vulnerable groups such as young people and older adults are also being pursued, and expansion into locally tailored services is underway by increasing specialized notifications for each local government. However, the gap between service awareness and actual usage, fatigue from excessive notifications, and concerns about the use of personal information are still pointed out as challenges to be resolved.