Gov't to form task force to handle Coupang data breach case
Coupang's headquarters in Seoul / Yonhap
The government said Thursday it will form an interagency task force to handle the recent large-scale data breach at e-commerce giant Coupang.
The decision was made at a meeting of science and technology–related ministers chaired by Science Minister Bae Kyung-hoon, the government said.
Led by Ryu Je-myung, second vice minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, the task force will consist of officials from the science ministry and other organizations, including the Personal Information Protection Committee, the Korea Media Communications Commission and the Financial Services Commission.
The task force will hold regular and ad hoc meetings to share information on police and government investigations into the breach and discuss ways to strengthen the company's accountability.
The move comes after the government vowed to take stern action against Coupang, which confirmed last month that the personal information of 33.7 million customer accounts had been compromised.
The company has since come under fire for a lukewarm response to the incident and an intransigent stance toward Korean authorities.
Harold Rogers, interim chief executive officer (CEO) of Coupang, apologized for the breach during a parliamentary hearing Wednesday but did not present detailed measures on customer compensation or data security.