Coupang CEO questioned over data breach case

Harold Rogers, left, interim CEO of Coupang, enters the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in Seoul, Friday, before being questioned over the company's large-scale personal data leak. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Harold Rogers, interim CEO of Coupang, appeared before police on Friday for questioning over allegations that the e-commerce giant tampered with evidence related to its massive personal data leak.

Rogers arrived at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency headquarters in central Seoul at about 2 p.m. and left shortly after 2:20 a.m. Saturday. He did not respond to reporters’ questions about whether he admitted to the allegations or planned to leave the country.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s special task force on the Coupang case summoned Rogers on suspicion of obstructing official duties and business operations related to the data breach that allegedly affected the personal information of more than 33 million customers.

"Coupang has fully and will continue to fully cooperate with all of the government investigations that are now looking into us. We will also fully cooperate with the police investigation today," Rogers told reporters before entering the agency building.

He did not answer any questions from reporters about the data breach.

Rogers had defied two previous summonses earlier this month after leaving the country on Jan. 1. He returned to Korea on Jan. 21 and told the police that he would appear for the third summons.

Friday marked the first time Rogers has been directly questioned by police since the task force was launched in December.

Harold Rogers, second from left, interim CEO of Coupang, talks to reporters at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in Seoul, Friday, before being questioned over the company's large-scale personal data leak. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Investigators interrogated him over allegations that the company analyzed a laptop belonging to a data breach suspect without consulting relevant government authorities, before publicly announcing last month that the data of only 3,000 customers had been leaked.

The Ministry of Science and ICT subsequently said the scaled-down estimate was the company's unilateral claim and requested a police investigation. Police also said Coupang's own laptop analysis was done without prior consultation with the authorities and that they believe the number of affected customers is much larger than 3,000.

In response to Rogers' statement during a parliamentary hearing on Dec. 31, 2025, that the company contacted the suspect under the National Intelligence Service's (NIS) instructions, the NIS denied the claim. The National Assembly also filed a complaint with police for perjury.

Coupang faces separate complaints over alleged industrial accident cover-ups at its logistics centers.

The police summons came amid a growing campaign from the U.S. government and Congress to push back against Korean authorities' investigation and any potential penalty on Coupang, which is a U.S.-listed company.

In mid-January, James Heller, the U.S. charge d’affaires in Seoul, sent a letter to top government officials here calling on Seoul not to discriminate against U.S. companies on digital issues. U.S. Vice President JD Vance also raised concerns about the Coupang issue in his meeting with Korea’s Prime Minister Kim Min-seok in Washington on Jan. 23.

There has also been speculation that U.S. President Donald Trump's sudden announcement to raise tariffs on Korean goods from 15 percent to 25 percent was linked to the Coupang issue, although Korean government officials said they don't believe that is the case.

However, House Judiciary Republicans, sharing Trump’s announcement, wrote on their official X (formerly Twitter) account, “This is what happens when you unfairly target American companies like Coupang.”