By Kim Da-ye



Some foreigners complain that they can't gain access to some websites because mobile carriers refuse to fix some technical glitches that prevent them from completing a verification process with their phone numbers.



Those affected have long names.



When they type in the names, the process, which requires phone numbers and dates of birth, crashes and flashes up an error message.



An investigation by The Korea Times found that mobile carriers have limited the length of their subscribers' names, effectively blocking those with long names from registering to new websites, using certain apps and purchasing goods online.



KT, the country's second largest mobile carrier, has the severest restriction by blocking a person with a name longer than 14 letters or seven Korean characters from getting their identity verified.



SK Telecom, the leading cellular operator, said that its database allows up to 40 letters or 20 Korean characters. LG Uplus claimed it has no such restriction, but the newspaper's own survey found the carrier allows up to 30 letters or 15 Korean characters.



"The restriction was not intended, and as we discovered the problem, we are already working on fixing the system to extend the limit," an official at KT said. KT pledged to fix it by April 30.



In the meantime, an official of SK Telecom said that the firm's system was already good enough and has no plans to change it. Another official later changed their stance, saying that they will address it, if any individual reports the problem.



LG Uplus's official insisted that the carrier has no such limit.



Foreigners found such restrictions absurd because in order to get a mobile phone on contract, they need to have properly settled down in the country with an alien registration number, a certain visa status, and a bank account or a credit card.



The ID verification system based on mobile phone numbers was introduced in February this year, because the revision in related law banned websites from gathering users' ID with their resident registration numbers.



The three mobile carriers--SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus--provide the phone data, and various verification service providers work as middlemen that match the information that users type in and the carriers' data.



SimpleX Internet found last month in the analysis of its users that mobile phone number-based authentications accounted for 89 percent of ID verifications. The IT firm said that the method is popular because it is more convenient to use than an i-PIN.



Some websites or apps accept mobile phone numbers only for ID verification. Smart Wallet, a popular app by SK Planet that manages dozens of membership cards, is an example.



Online ID verification had plagued foreigners living in Korea for many years. Until lately, most websites accepted only resident registration numbers, not alien registration numbers. Many small- and medium-size websites still do not.



In addition, websites that allow foreigners to register do not have a standardized way for them to type in their names and do not have any clear instructions for it. Some require names to be written in the same way as they appear on alien registration cards while some do not allow a space between the first and last names. Foreigners are also often confused if the last name should be written before the first name or the other way around.



