Police in Seoul raid e-commerce giant Coupang’s headquarters over a data breach affecting 33.7 million users, nearly two-thirds of South Korea’s population
SEOUL: South Korean police have raided the headquarters of e-commerce giant Coupang over a major data leak.
The raid at the company’s Seoul office was conducted as a necessary measure to accurately understand the incident.
Seventeen officers from the cyber investigation unit were deployed for the search and seizure operation.
Police vowed to comprehensively investigate the breach based on the evidence obtained.
Coupang had previously informed authorities that personal data of 33.7 million customers was exposed.
This figure represents almost two-thirds of South Korea’s total population.
The leaked information included names, email addresses, phone numbers, shipping addresses and some order histories.
The company stated that payment details and login credentials were not affected.
Seoul authorities said the leak occurred through Coupang’s overseas servers from June 24 to November 8.
The firm reportedly only became aware of the breach last month.
Coupang has filed a complaint against a former employee, a Chinese national, as the alleged culprit.
Last week, President Lee Jae Myung called for swift action to penalise those responsible.
The presidential office also demanded Coupang present clear measures for compensating affected users.
Presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik said the firm must outline how it will take responsibility for damages.
The company now faces a class action lawsuit in the United States, where its global headquarters is based.
This case follows a major breach at South Korea’s largest mobile carrier, SK Telecom.
SK Telecom was fined 134 billion won (USD 91 million) in August after a cyberattack exposed data on nearly 27 million users.
South Korea, among the world’s most wired nations, has frequently been a target of hacking by North Korea.
Police last year confirmed North Korean hackers stole sensitive data from a South Korean court network over two years.
Last month, authorities also suspected a North Korean group behind a cyberattack on cryptocurrency exchange Upbit.
That attack led to the unauthorised withdrawal of 44.5 billion won in digital assets. – AFP
