Additional victims in the personal data leak case at matchmaking company Duo have filed a class-action damages suit against the company. More than 500 people have now filed lawsuits against Duo. They claim that not only basic personal data but also sensitive personal information such as marital history was leaked and are seeking 1 million won per person in damages.
According to legal sources on the 15th, law firm LKB Pyeongsan filed a second damages complaint with the Seoul Central District Court the previous day on behalf of 455 victims of the Duo personal data leak. This is the second suit following the first class-action damages suit filed on the 6th by 46 victims against Duo. With this, the number of victims participating in the suits has risen to 501 in total.
LKB Pyeongsan sought 1 million won in damages per victim. The firm plans to increase the claim amount if secondary harm such as voice phishing, fraud, threats, misuse of personal details, or damage to social reputation is confirmed in the future.
According to LKB Pyeongsan, the currently identified categories of Duo's leaked personal data number 72. In addition to basic information such as name, the leak included parents' addresses and workplaces, head of household's name, residence, smoking and drinking status, owned assets, and other income. It was found that extremely sensitive information such as preferred partner style, marital history, reasons for divorce, and the name of a former spouse was also leaked.
Victims participating in the suit are said to be suffering severe emotional distress. One victim said, "My marital history, photos, workplace name, workplace address, residence, years of marriage and divorce, and even my self-introduction were leaked," adding, "Not knowing where and how my personal data is being used, suspicion and anxiety are turning into fear. It feels like being thrown naked into a public square."
LKB Pyeongsan said the retention of personal data for withdrawn members is also a key issue. Some victims said that even after they had withdrawn, their information remained stored in Duo's personal data leak inquiry system and that they were in fact included among those whose data was leaked.
LKB Pyeongsan plans to focus on whether Duo implemented security measures required under the Personal Information Protection Act, whether it lawfully retained and destroyed withdrawn members' information, whether the scope of personal data collection and retention was excessive, and whether notification to victims and measures to prevent secondary harm after the leak were appropriate.
Jeong Tae-won, an attorney who heads LKB Pyeongsan's class-action center, said, "This case goes beyond a leak of names and contact information to expose the entirety of personalities and private lives, including marital history, reasons for divorce, family relationships, workplaces, assets, and tendencies," adding, "Victims' shame, anxiety, and fear of social stigma cannot be taken lightly."