Samsung Electronics has temporarily suspended the production of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones.
 
An official of the tech giant said Monday that the decision was made to place priority on the safety of consumers amid a series of reports both at home and abroad of replacement phones catching fire.
 
On such cases reported in the U.S., the official said Samsung is waiting for orders by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which is investigating the latest incidents. The official said that the company will decide whether or not to further produce the phones in line with the commission’s decision.
 
Currently, a total of five cases of the phone overheating and being ignited have been reported in the U.S., and one case each in South Korea, China and Taiwan.
 
The Korea Testing Laboratory examined the one case reported in South Korea and concluded that the phone caught fire due to a strong external shock. Results of investigations on cases reported abroad have yet to be released.