Fair Trade Commission: "Bodyfriend's Malicious False Advertising on 'Height and Sexual Performance Improvement'... Prosecutor Referral and Fine Imposed"

Violation of the Bioethics Act Reported to the Ministry of Health and Welfare

"Clinical trials conducted on company employees, not the general public"

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has decided to file charges with the prosecution against Bodyfriend for falsely advertising that its massage chair for adolescents has effects on "height growth and improvement of learning ability." The FTC explained that the malicious and intentional false advertising regarding human efficacy is a serious and clear violation, and thus the strictest measures under relevant laws were taken.

On the 15th, the FTC announced that it decided to impose corrective orders (including public announcement orders) and a fine of 22 million KRW on Bodyfriend for falsely advertising that its adolescent massage chair, Hi-Key, has effects on height growth and cognitive functions such as concentration and memory improvement. Additionally, the FTC reported the suspected violations of the Bioethics Act and other laws related to clinical trials uncovered during the investigation to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the competent authority.

According to the FTC, Bodyfriend advertised on its website, newspapers, magazines, and leaflets from the launch of Hi-Key on January 7, 2019, until August 20 of the same year, claiming that the Hi-Key massage chair had effects on height growth as well as brain massage benefits such as recovery from brain fatigue and improvement in concentration and memory. In particular, regarding the brain massage effects, advertisements stated objective figures such as "8.8 times faster brain fatigue recovery, 2 times longer concentration, 2.4 times increased memory," implying that brain massage has proven efficacy in enhancing cognitive functions.

The FTC judged that Bodyfriend never substantiated the height growth effects through clinical trials and even internally acknowledged in documents that "the effect was not proven," yet still advertised as if the height growth effect existed. Earlier, in early last year, the Korea Broadcast Advertising Corporation and the Korea Communications Standards Commission also determined that expressions related to height growth misled consumers into believing there was an effect without evidence.

Regarding the brain massage effects, the FTC viewed the clinical trials underlying the scientific papers cited by Bodyfriend, which were published in Science Citation Index (SCI)-level journals, as unreliable because they were conducted on company employees, raising concerns about violations of the Bioethics Act and research ethics. Bodyfriend selected its own employees as research subjects, who are considered "vulnerable research subjects" under the "Regulations on the Safety of Pharmaceuticals, etc.," without obtaining review from an Institutional Review Board (IRB), which is an essential procedure mandated by the Bioethics and Safety Act.

Accordingly, the FTC determined that Bodyfriend violated the Act on Fair Labeling and Advertising and decided to impose corrective orders including prohibition of future acts and public announcement orders, a fine of 22 million KRW, and to file charges with the prosecution.

Goo Sung-rim, Director of the Consumer Safety Information Division at the FTC, said, "We took the strictest measures under the labeling and advertising law against acts that misled consumers by exploiting the greatest concerns of adolescents and parents?appearance and learning ability." He added, "We hope this action will serve as an opportunity to prevent the circulation of false information in the market."