Private Information of Tutors Easily Accessible Through Tutoring Apps
Fear Grows That Brokerage Apps Could Become Crime Targets
After the murder of a woman in her 20s in Busan, fear of online intermediary apps is spreading. In particular, the tutoring app took a direct hit as it was revealed that Jeong Yujeong (23), whose identity was disclosed, targeted her victim through a tutoring intermediary app.
On the 5th, female university student A, who posted on communities used by college students such as Everytime, said, "I live in Busan, and the thought that Jeong Yujeong might have seen my information is chilling," adding, "I deleted the tutoring app because I felt I could become a victim."
The fear that brokerage apps can lead to crime is also spreading among users of job-seeking brokerage apps, commonly known as 'Jaeneung Market'. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. [Photo by Pixabay]
Female university student B, who frequently uses intermediary apps, said, "Recently, I was contacted by a middle-aged man," adding, "He sent messages like 'I'm not interested in tutoring, just chatting is fine. I'll pay whatever amount you want.'"
Other posts followed, saying, "I quit after the incident because I felt uneasy," "I was scared and canceled tutoring today," and "I'm considering quitting because I'm uneasy about having posted photos and other personal information."
Concerns about Misuse of Tutoring Apps for Sexual Crimes Raised Since Long Ago
Jeong Yujeong (23), who is accused of murdering a peer woman and disposing of the body, is being transferred from Busan Dongnae Police Station to the prosecution on the morning of the 2nd. [Photo by Yonhap News]
Jeong Yujeong approached the victim woman on the tutoring intermediary app on the 24th of last month, two days before the incident, pretending to be a parent by saying, "My child in the 3rd year of middle school wants English tutoring."
Most tutoring apps require tutors to submit images of their university student ID cards and identification online when registering. The tutor’s alma mater middle and high schools, high school grades, and photos are also disclosed.
In the case of the intermediary app used by Jeong Yujeong, documents proving identity such as student IDs must also be uploaded. Moreover, phone numbers can be easily obtained through the tutoring app. Most tutoring apps allow students or parent members to check the tutor’s phone number with just a few clicks.
While the identity verification of students and parents is not properly conducted, excessive exposure of tutors’ personal information such as phone numbers makes tutors easy targets for crimes.
Concerns that tutoring apps could be misused as channels for sexual crimes have been raised for a long time. In August last year, in Uijeongbu, a man in his 20s with two prior convictions including prostitution lured a university student through a tutoring app and attempted sexual assault.
The tutoring app reportedly used by Jeong Yujeong posted a notice on its homepage on the 3rd, stating, "We will strengthen identity verification for students and parents and change the mandatory input fields such as residence area and personal photos in teachers’ profiles to optional."
Meanwhile, fear that intermediary apps could lead to crimes is also spreading among users of so-called 'talent markets,' which are job intermediary apps. In the past, crimes using intermediary apps were mainly limited to sexual crimes exploiting random chat apps, but recently, the trend is diversifying.
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