Source: Financial Times (paywall)
South Korea's first major overhaul of its National Security Act since 1948 explicitly targets economic espionage against its semiconductor industry. The revision reflects a shift in how geopolitical competition operates: through supply chains rather than traditional state secrets. Chip manufacturing capacity—not military intelligence—has become the primary security vulnerability for advanced economies. The law creates immediate friction with China and other competitors, who will face criminal liability for recruiting engineers or acquiring design data, raising the cost and risk of industrial espionage in Asia's most contested tech sector.