Police arrest 18 in billion-won personal data hacking case

A hacking group that stole hundreds of billions of won using the names of more than 20 people, including BTS member Jungkook, was found to have accessed the personal information of more than 250 wealthy individuals, including chairmen of major corporations. The combined account balances of those affected exceeded 55 trillion won.

On Aug. 28, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s Cyber Investigation Unit announced the arrest of 18 people, including ringleader A (34, in custody), of an international hacking group that stole personal information from wealthy individuals, illegally opened prepaid mobile accounts, and siphoned funds from their bank accounts. The Chinese national A was arrested in Bangkok, Thailand, on Aug. 22 and repatriated to South Korea, while another Chinese accomplice, B, was also recently apprehended in Bangkok and is undergoing repatriation.

Initially, 26 victims were reported, from whom A and his group had siphoned 39 billion won. Police investigations later confirmed that a total of 258 people had their personal information leaked in the hack. The victims included 70 chairmen and CEOs of South Korea’s top 100 companies, 12 celebrities and influencers, and six athletes.

The combined account balances of the victims totaled 55.2 trillion won. “The hackers targeted moments when the wealthy individuals could not check their phones due to incarceration or travel,” a police official said. “More than 55 trillion won effectively became the target of the crime.”

A and B are Chinese-Korean hackers reportedly familiar with conditions in South Korea. To recruit local accomplices, they posted messages on Telegram advertising “high-paying part-time jobs” and approached individuals who had suffered losses in cryptocurrency investments, reportedly offering to “recover their investment losses.”

Police are continuing their investigation into the arrested subordinates, which include four Chinese members and 12 South Koreans responsible for money laundering and operational tasks, to uncover additional crimes.


정서영기자 cero@donga.com