Press Conference by Yusamo at Press Center on the 22nd Afternoon
Exposing Phishing Scams via YouTube and Other Ads
Yoo Jae-suk, Baek Ji-young, Kim Nam-gil Join Statement
"Hello, I am John Lee." Former Meritz Asset Management CEO John Lee appears in a video announcing the creation of a ‘free stock exchange learning group.’ The video also displays an advertisement saying, "Contact me anytime via KakaoTalk" and instructs viewers to send the number ‘33’ through the KakaoTalk messenger. This is a fake video created using deepfake technology.
Famous figures such as instructor Kim Mi-kyung and former CEO John Lee, who have been exploited in phishing advertisements on online platforms like YouTube, have joined a joint action to raise awareness about the reality of these crimes. Starting with deepfake videos, a scam method that builds trust and then convinces victims to deposit cash into investment apps created by phishing organizations is becoming widespread.
The ‘Association for Solving Online Phishing Crimes Impersonating Celebrities’ (hereafter Yusamo), including these individuals, will hold a press conference on the afternoon of the 22nd at the Seoul Press Center to highlight the seriousness of phishing crimes impersonating celebrities. Yusamo is an organization formed mainly by instructor Kim Mi-kyung, Professor Kim Young-ik of Sogang University, YouTuber Dotty, comedian Song Eun-yi, former Meritz Asset Management CEO John Lee, former Hanwha Investment & Securities CEO Joo Jin-hyung, and broadcaster Hwang Hyun-hee. The statement from Yusamo includes participation from 132 celebrities such as Yoo Jae-suk, Kim Nam-gil, and Baek Ji-young.
Yusamo plans to raise awareness about the damage caused by phishing scams impersonating celebrities, especially those exploiting widely known platform advertisements like YouTube. The method works as follows: In the detailed description of a video where instructor Kim Mi-kyung recommends investments, a separate guide page appears. When personal information is entered, individual messages arrive via KakaoTalk or Telegram, claiming to be from ‘Kim Mi-kyung’s secretary or acquaintance.’ Afterwards, victims are invited to communities such as Naver Band, where they continuously receive financial information. After building trust this way, victims are led to sign up for investment apps created by phishing organizations and then encouraged to deposit money.
Deepfake video impersonating John Lee, former CEO of Meritz Asset Management / Photo by YouTube Capture
The significant damage caused by scams impersonating celebrities is analyzed as a result of the combination of deepfake technology and regulatory blind spots on platforms. In the deepfake phishing video of former CEO John Lee, there were many awkward parts, such as excessive mouth movements and mismatches between voice and lip movements. However, the video is openly advertised on YouTube, easily deceiving users.
Yusamo stated, "Despite the low quality, the video appears in YouTube ads watched by many people, causing confusion among users," and added, "Platforms should filter these videos in advance, but it seems such systems are not functioning well."
According to Yusamo, victims have suffered losses averaging between 150 million and 300 million KRW, with some losing as much as 800 million KRW. Hansang Jun, a legal advisor from the law firm Daegeon, estimates that the total damage from online phishing crimes impersonating celebrities exceeds 1 trillion KRW.
Currently, advertising on new media platforms like YouTube is left to corporate self-regulation. A representative from the Korea Communications Commission said, "There are currently no regulations on internet advertisements regarding how many ads should be aired per hour or what content they should contain."
Experts emphasize the need to strengthen platform self-filtering. Professor Kwak Kyu-tae of Soonchunhyang University’s College of Global Management said, "The distribution and spread of false information through platforms is a problem," adding, "It seems necessary for platform operators to proactively suppress the spread by categorizing serious cases." Professor Kwak further added, "In the case of advertisements, since platform operators gain economic benefits, they should monitor with a higher sense of responsibility."
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