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Data breach

Hackers breach about 90 South Korean companies, steal 8.2 million personal data records

First reported · Last reported · 9 related reports

Seven members of a gang were caught for breaking into the networks of about 90 South Korean businesses, including hospitals, cram schools, universities and golf courses, and stealing about 8.2 million records of personal information and internal data. The gang broke in using self-taught hacking skills and generative AI to find vulnerabilities and attack methods, and demanded a total of 360 million won from 38 victim companies. After they began making full use of generative AI, they hacked 60 companies in 44 days.

Key facts

Affected organisation
Being confirmed
Incident type
Data breach
Occurred / detected
Not confirmed
Scale of damage
About 8.2 million records of personal information and internal data stolen from about 90 South Korean companies; 360 million won demanded from 38
Cause / method
Break-ins to networks using self-taught hacking skills and generative AI to find vulnerabilities and attack methods
Location
South Korea

If your data was exposed

  1. Don’t tap links in texts, calls or emails that mention this incident and offer compensation, refunds or breach checks. Check directly on the organisation’s official website or app.
  2. If you’ve suffered harm, report it. Call 118 (no area code) for privacy violations, contact the police for financial losses, and apply for dispute mediation to seek compensation.Personal Information Infringement Report Centre ↗Korean National Police Agency cybercrime report ↗Personal Information Dispute Mediation Committee ↗

Timeline

  1. The arrest of a gang that stole about 8.2 million records of personal information from 90 South Korean companies and demanded money was announced.
  2. It was confirmed that the gang caught in a hacking and extortion case involving generative AI had seven members.
  3. It emerged that they demanded a total of 360 million won from 38 victim companies and hacked 60 companies in 44 days after making full use of AI.

9 related reports

The summary and key facts are written by AI from related reports and may contain errors. Check the original articles and the organisation’s official statements for accurate details.