Gov't launches task force for Coupang data breach probe
Police officials carry boxes after completing a raid at Coupang's headquarters in Seoul, Dec. 9, as part of a probe into the e-commerce operator's personal data breach. Joint Press Corps
Korea on Tuesday launched an interagency task force (TF) to carry out an investigation into the recent data breach at U.S. e-commerce giant Coupang that affected 33.7 million users.
The new TF, comprising officials from the science and labor ministries, along with the media watchdog, financial authorities, the police and the spy agency, held its first meeting on the day to investigate facts behind the breach, according to the Ministry of Science and ICT.
The task force will discuss ways to protect users and revamp data protection policies, the ministry said.
"The government considers the Coupang incident a major social crisis that has damaged public trust," Second Vice Science Minister Ryu Je-myung said in a release.
"Through the government-wide TF, we will investigate the cause of the incident and identify accountability, while protecting users and strengthening corporate social responsibility," Ryu added.
Ryu said the government will "take stern measures" if the investigation reveals any legal violations by Coupang.
In November, Coupang said the personal information of its customers had been compromised, indicating that data, such as names, phone numbers, email addresses and delivery details of nearly all members, has been affected.