Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Bae Kyung-hoon of the Ministry of Science and ICT said on the 11th that a claim by Coupang, based on its own review late last year, that about 3,000 account victims were affected was not sufficiently credible, speaking at a Ministry of Science and ICT briefing before the National Assembly's Science. ICT. Broadcasting. and Communications Committee.
The Ministry of Science and ICT (public-private joint investigation team) released the final findings on the Coupang breach on the 10th, saying that information on about 33.67 million customers was leaked at Coupang from Apr. 14 to Nov. 8 last year.
Bae said, "Coupang submitted a report saying the attacker leaked only 3,000 cases, but what they provided was not the full version, only parts of a report," adding, "33.67 million cases could be stored on a hard disk or in the cloud, but Coupang is not being clear about such matters."
In response to a question from Rep. Hwang Jung-ah of the Democratic Party of Korea asking whether the government had taken any discriminatory action against Coupang, Bae answered, "We are proceeding in accordance with the law and principles." This was in response to claims of discrimination by the Korean government related to the Coupang incident at the U.S. House Judiciary Committee on the 5th (local time).
Rep. Hwang said, "SK Telecom discovered the leak directly and even reported it, yet strong penalties were imposed, while Coupang, after receiving a hacking threat email, announced that information from only 3,000 accounts had been leaked, but at least information from more than 30 million accounts, order information, and even shared entrance passwords were leaked," adding, "From the Korean government's perspective, isn't this naturally a matter that must be investigated?" Bae agreed, saying, "I believe it is the government's duty to investigate and clarify the facts clearly."
Bae said, "We are continuing to communicate regarding the positions of the U.S. government and the Korean government," adding, "The Office of the Minister for Trade and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are taking action, and the Ministry of Science and ICT is also cooperating."
When asked whether the announcement of the findings on Coupang the previous day was timed in consideration of moves in the U.S. House, Bae said, "We sought to release it as quickly as possible and did not choose the timing to align with anything."