South Korea harnesses tech prowess in coronavirus fight

IT makes social distancing more bearable, but new privacy concerns emerge

20200515 S.K. School

South Korea was an early adopter of distance learning to help combat the coronavirus outbreak. © Getty Images

KIM JAEWON, Nikkei staff writer

SEOUL -- If any country in the world was prepared to deal with the consequences of a socially distanced world, it was probably South Korea.

A big part of that preparedness comes down to having one of the world's most advanced internet infrastructures. Last year it became one of the first countries to switch on fifth-generation mobile services, and its household internet penetration rate was top among OECD members in 2018, at 99.5%.

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