This combined photo shows the webpages of Naver and Kakao, created to mourn the Jeju Air crash victims and their bereaved families. Screenshots from Naver and Kakao

The Jeju Air plane crash at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province has reignited a debate over whether family members of disaster victims should be granted access to the deceased's digital accounts, including social media data.

On Friday, five days after the worst-ever aviation accident on Korean soil claimed 179 lives, the victims' families requested the government to liaise with IT firms to allow them access to their loved ones' social media accounts.

They made the request because the victims' mobile devices were severely damaged, making it difficult for the bereaved families to notify the deceased's friends and acquaintances of their deaths. Most victims' smartphones require time-consuming forensic analysis, as they were burned by fire and explosions.

"Children of the victims are facing difficulties notifying their parents' acquaintances," the group representing the bereaved families said. "We ask the ICT ministry to allow the bereaved families to access the information of the victims' acquaintances through the KakaoTalk mobile messenger app."

In response, Transport Minister Park Sang-woo informed the bereaved families that government ministries had discussions to persuade smartphone manufacturers and social media operators to provide the victims' digital data.

The bereaved families of the Jeju Air plane crash victims and the government officials bow to each other at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla Province, Sunday, as search operations ended at the crash site. Newsis

Samsung Electronics, for example, has not unlocked the victims' smartphones, although the company has repaired damaged devices for free.

Kakao said that, upon the request of the ICT ministry, technical and legal reviews are underway to determine whether the company can provide the bereaved families with information about the victims' acquaintances on KakaoTalk.

So far, the messenger app operator has not shared its deceased users' private data with the grieving relatives.

"If we disclose their KakaoTalk messages, we could even infringe on the privacy rights of all participants in the conversations, including the deceased users," the company said.

Similarly, Naver, another major social media platform in Korea, has not permitted bereaved families to inherit the accounts of its deceased users.

Both companies have only supported the deletion of deceased users' accounts to protect their right to be forgotten.

Such policies have sparked controversy whenever tragedies occur in Korea.

After the Itaewon Halloween disaster in 2022, the sinking of the Sewol ferry in 2014 and North Korea's attack on the ROKS Cheonan corvette in 2010, the bereaved families asked for access to digital accounts.

Proponents of access to digital accounts cite U.S. tech firms, such as Meta, Google and Apple, which allow the passing down of digital contents to designated beneficiaries after a person's death.

However, the National Assembly has never passed bills to legalize such practices in Korea, since lawmakers began proposing related bills in 2010.