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Jane Han

Korea Times Digital Content Reporter

Jane Han is the North America editor for The Korea Times. Based in Seattle, she has covered business, culture and social issues across the United States for over 15 years. She previously worked at The Boston Globe.

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South Korea

Overnight Coupang outage causes widespread disruptions, sparks fresh hacking fears

Coupang and its affiliated services suffered widespread access disruptions early Friday, temporarily preventing users from shopping, ordering food or streaming videos and raising fresh cybersecurity concerns following the e-commerce giant's previous data breach. The disruptions reportedly began around 1 a.m., affecting Coupang's website and mobile app, food delivery platform Coupang Eats and streaming service Coupang Play. Access to the services appeared to have been restored roughly two hours later. Users attempting to access the services encountered error messages, including one reading, "The network connection is not working. Please check your connection and try again." Others reported being unable to log in, search for products or retrieve account information. Some Coupang Eats customers also complained that they could not track food orders already placed. The outage quickly prompted a wave of complaints across online communities, where users questioned whether the disruption could be linked to another cyberattack. "Has it been hacked again?" one user wrote on a Naver online community

Oct 9, 2026By Jane Han
Overnight Coupang outage causes widespread disruptions, sparks fresh hacking fears
World

Cornell and Burning Sun: What's behind the comparisons?

SEATTLE — The sexual assault allegations involving seven current and former Cornell University students are drawing comparisons to Korea’s Burning Sun scandal, with parallels focusing on private group chats, male group dynamics and questions of institutional accountability. The Cornell case centers on allegations that a female student was drugged and sexually assaulted by multiple members of the Chi Phi fraternity in October 2024. A civil lawsuit filed last month names seven current and former students, including Winston Lee, whose ties to Korea have drawn particular attention in Korean and Korean American online communities. Burning Sun erupted in 2019 as one of Korea’s most notorious scandals in recent years, growing from allegations surrounding a Seoul nightclub into a sprawling case involving prostitution, sexual violence, illegally filmed and disseminated sexual videos, gambling and allegations of police corruption. Min Joo Lee, an assistant professor of Asian studies at Occidental College whose research includes gender and sexuality in South Korea, told The Korea Times that

Oct 2, 2026By Jane Han
Cornell and Burning Sun: What's behind the comparisons?
World

US users turn to Korean netizens in hunt for Cornell defendant Winston Lee

SEATTLE — The sprawling online hunt for information about Winston Lee, widely believed to be a Korean national who is among seven defendants in a Cornell University sexual assault lawsuit, is increasingly crossing borders, with English-speaking social media users calling on Korean netizens to help uncover more details about him. As the “Cornell 7” case continues to draw intense attention across the United States, Lee has become the subject of a parallel search focused on his Korean identity and background. Publicly available information about him remains limited compared with the volume of material circulating about some of the other defendants. Some English-language users have begun openly looking to Korean netizens to take the search further. “OK Korean people, we're counting on you to track one of your own people down,” one user wrote in a social media thread. “Leaving it up to the knetz,” another wrote, using a shorthand for Korean netizens. Other comments described Korean internet users as “ruthless hunters” and said they “know how to punish their own.” The sear

Sep 30, 2026By Jane Han
US users turn to Korean netizens in hunt for Cornell defendant Winston Lee
World

Criminal case reopened in Cornell sexual assault case involving Korean student

SEATTLE — A Korean student named as one of seven defendants in a sexual assault lawsuit involving a Cornell University is facing renewed scrutiny as prosecutors in New York are reopening the criminal investigation into the 2024 case. Winston Lee, widely believed to be a Korean national, is among seven current and former Cornell students accused in a civil lawsuit filed this month by a former student identified as Jane Doe. She alleges that she was drugged and sexually assaulted by multiple members of the Chi Phi fraternity at its house in October 2024. No criminal charges were filed following the initial police investigation, but Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said Monday that his office has begun reconsidering whether charges should be pursued. “I have been asked by the community to revisit the decision whether to pursue criminal charges against the seven fraternity members,” Van Houten said in a statement. “I have already begun that process, starting with our conversation with Jane Doe and her attorneys.” Van Houten said his office intends to take the ca

Sep 29, 2026By Jane Han
Criminal case reopened in Cornell sexual assault case involving Korean student
World

Korean among 7 named in Cornell lawsuit alleging drugging, sexual assault

SEATTLE — A student believed to be Korean is among seven current and former Cornell University students named as defendants in a sexual assault lawsuit involving disturbing allegations that have drawn growing attention across the U.S. and within the Korean American community. A former student at the Ivy League university, identified as Jane Doe, filed the lawsuit this month in New York, alleging that she was pressured into taking a substance described as ketamine and sexually assaulted by multiple members of the Chi Phi fraternity at its house in October 2024, according to The Cornell Daily Sun. The complaint names seven students, including Winston Lee, and brings sexual assault and other claims against them. The allegations have not been proven in court, and an attorney representing one of the defendants has denied the allegations against his client. The lawsuit has drawn attention beyond the Cornell campus, with U.S. media outlets reporting on the case and Cornell’s social media accounts drawing a flood of comments about the allegations. The case has also surfaced on Korean Americ

Sep 26, 2026By Jane Han
Korean among 7 named in Cornell lawsuit alleging drugging, sexual assault
World

Korea's limited Hormuz role may not satisfy Trump: expert

SEATTLE — President Lee Jae Myung’s proposal to expand South Korea’s maritime security role in the Strait of Hormuz while ruling out involvement in the war represents a “realistic and constructive” contribution, but may not be enough to satisfy U.S. President Donald Trump, a U.S. expert said. Scott Snyder, president and CEO of the Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI) and a longtime scholar of South Korea-U.S. alliance and security issues, said Lee’s approach is consistent with how South Korea has responded to similar U.S. requests in the past. “Something along those lines represents a realistic and constructive offer from South Korea, but by President Trump’s logic such a limited contribution may not pass muster,” Snyder told The Korea Times. Lee said Friday that South Korea would not deploy troops or military assets in a way that would involve the country in the war, while confirming that Seoul is considering strengthening the role of the Cheonghae Unit to protect Korean commercial vessels, oil shipping routes and citizens. Snyder noted that South Korea responded

Sep 19, 2026By Jane Han
Korea's limited Hormuz role may not satisfy Trump: expert
South Korea

Seoul's Jongno 3-ga rises to world's coolest neighborhood

Seoul’s Jongno 3-ga has gone from cool to coolest, taking the No. 1 spot on Time Out’s list of the world’s coolest neighborhoods in 2026 after ranking third five years ago. The historic downtown neighborhood was praised for its mix of old Seoul and new energy, from late-night food stalls, or "pocha," to independent businesses and traditional Korean houses, or "hanok." Time Out said Jongno 3-ga has only grown cooler since its previous appearance, citing the rise of late-evening outdoor dining, independent businesses and shops. The neighborhood’s appeal increasingly stretches across generations. Today, younger crowds are flocking to the area, drawn by its affordable food and relaxed, open-air atmosphere. "Jongno 3-ga thrives as a social intersection," Time Out wrote, describing a neighborhood where different generations and communities have long crossed paths. Nearby Ikseon-dong has become a magnet for cafes and boutiques tucked into century-old hanok, while Seosulla-gil offers another side of the neighborhood, with craft workshops, jewelry studios and bars. The ranking has put Jongn

Sep 18, 2026By Jane Han
Seoul's Jongno 3-ga rises to world's coolest neighborhood
South Korea

Seoul bus strike averted after last-minute wage deal

Seoul city buses will operate normally Wednesday after labor and management reached a last-minute wage agreement early in the morning, averting a strike that had been scheduled to begin at 4 a.m. The two sides reached the agreement at around 1:50 a.m. after nearly 12 hours of negotiations at the Seoul Regional Labor Relations Commission. Under the deal, wages will rise 3.2 percent in 2026, up 0.3 percentage point from last year's 2.9 percent increase. The two sides, however, left unresolved a key dispute over the number of monthly working hours used to calculate ordinary wages. They agreed to determine the calculation standard after a related Supreme Court ruling expected later this year. The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it has lifted emergency transportation measures prepared for the strike and that public transportation will operate as usual.

Sep 16, 2026By Jane Han
Seoul bus strike averted after last-minute wage deal
World

Over 300 Korean workers take legal action against US gov't over Georgia raid

SEATTLE — More than 300 South Korean workers detained in a high-profile immigration raid at a Hyundai Motor Group-LG Energy Solution joint venture battery plant in the U.S. state of Georgia last year have begun taking steps toward legal action against the U.S. government, CNN reported Tuesday. The workers have started filing administrative claims with nine federal agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection, the FBI and the departments of justice and labor. The filings are a required step before the workers can pursue lawsuits against the federal government under the Federal Tort Claims Act. A Korean attorney representing the workers said she aims to file claims on behalf of all of them by the end of the year. The claims allege that workers were unlawfully detained during the raid on Sept. 4, 2025, and subjected to poor conditions while held at an ICE detention facility. They are seeking damages for lost work, confiscated belongings and psychological harm, among other claims. Federal authorities detai

Sep 16, 2026By Jane Han
Over 300 Korean workers take legal action against US gov't over Georgia raid
World

Can AI be a public utility? World watches Korea's bold experiment

SEATTLE — Korea's plan to give everyone free, unlimited access to artificial intelligence (AI) initially landed at home as another government technology initiative. But over the past week, foreign media and commentators have cast it in far more consequential terms: a bold experiment in treating AI as public infrastructure. The Wall Street Journal described Korea's “AI for All” initiative as the first major state-led effort to treat generative AI as a public utility, while TechRadar, a global technology news and review publication, said other governments would be watching the experiment closely. “Most governments still talk about artificial intelligence as something to regulate or subsidize. South Korea is trying something considerably bolder,” TechRadar said in an opinion piece this week. The publication said Korea is treating AI access less like a premium software subscription and more like “a basic piece of national infrastructure,” a view echoed by industry experts. “South Korea just made AI a public utility, like water and electricity,” Luis Felipe Gutman, managing

Sep 10, 2026By Jane Han
Can AI be a public utility? World watches Korea's bold experiment
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