Big Data To Help South Korea Forecast Enemy Threats

South Korea is considering employing big data solutions to forecast enemy threats and strengthen its defense readiness. 

Defense officials, venture firms and experts gathered at a seminar in Seoul to discuss ways to further utilize big data in beefing up the military's defense capabilities against North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats.

Big data is huge volumes of information which is very vast and complex that traditional processing applications cannot handle the workload.

The advantage of having Big data is that they can be analyzed for insights that lead to better decision-making and enhance efficiency, Yonhap News Agency reported this week.

"This year, we are planning to set up a system to analyze defense-related big data and introduce advanced information and communication technologies in the defense sector to cut costs and enhance deterrence capabilities," said Hwang Hee-jong, deputy minister for Planning & Coordination at the ministry.

In last year's achievements based on big data analysis, the military reduced the operating costs of military personnel by 25 billion won (about US$22 million) and the Air Force developed a program that helps pilots predict risks during flight, significantly contributing to aviation safety, the ministry said in a statement.

On Feb. 7, 2017, government officials and experts attend a seminar held at the defense ministry in Seoul to discuss ways to increase the use of big data in defense matters.

North Korea is the greatest source of geopolitical risk for South Korea because of the former’s unpredictable and secretive military actions against the latter.