The Personal Information Protection Commission urged Coupang to immediately stop posting its own investigation results related to the personal information leak on its app and website.
On the 14th, the Personal Information Protection Commission said it made this judgment after holding a general meeting to review Coupang's overall response following the data leak.
The Personal Information Protection Commission pointed out as a problem that even while the leak investigation is underway, Coupang contacted the former employee identified as the leaker on its own, obtained a one-sided statement, and posted and maintained it on the app and web as if it had been confirmed in an official investigation.
It judged that such action could not only mislead the public about the facts but also make it difficult to identify the precise content of the leak and the extent of the damage, potentially hindering the commission's leak investigation itself.
The Personal Information Protection Commission also said the notice runs counter to the intent of the improvement urges it resolved twice (Dec. 3 and Dec. 10 last year). It explained that if information not verified through an official investigation is delivered in a distorted form, it could cause confusion for the public and make it difficult for data subjects to exercise their rights.
The Personal Information Protection Commission said it found Coupang's implementation of prior improvement recommendations to be largely perfunctory and insufficient, and that additional improvements are needed.
Accordingly, it requested that Coupang provide a data-leak lookup function within its app and website and promptly notify data subjects included on the delivery address list of the leak.
It also noted that during the investigation, there have been repeated instances in which Coupang did not submit materials requested by the Personal Information Protection Commission or submitted them late.
The Personal Information Protection Commission issued a stern warning that such conduct could constitute obstruction of an investigation and could be considered an aggravating factor in future sanctions, and it strongly urged measures to prevent a recurrence.