Over 1,000 Online Game-Related Complaints Filed in the Past Three Years
Contract-Related Damages Account for 68% of Cases
Korea Consumer Agency: "Check Domestic Contact Information for Overseas Games"
Last year, consumer complaints related to online game item purchases surged in South Korea.
According to the Korea Consumer Agency on April 20, the number of requests for dispute resolution related to online games over the past three years, from 2022 to last year, reached 1,055 cases. The number of cases was 248 in 2022, 288 in 2023, and 519 in 2024, showing a steep upward trend. In particular, last year saw the sharpest increase, rising by 80.2% compared to the previous year.
Over the past three years, contract-related damages accounted for the largest share at 62.8% (661 cases), followed by damages related to unfair practices such as voice phishing (electronic financial fraud) at 23.8% (251 cases). Among contract-related damages, the most common cases involved requests to withdraw or cancel contracts after purchasing a game or game item, accounting for 41.7% (439 cases).
There were also many cases involving contract breaches such as account suspension or service disruptions during gameplay (11.3%, 119 cases), as well as contract cancellations due to minors making payments for games or items (9.8%, 103 cases).
By age group, those in their 30s accounted for 37.6% (397 cases), those in their 40s for 26.4% (279 cases), and those in their 20s for 22.0% (232 cases), meaning that people in their 20s to 40s made up 86% of all cases. Cases involving minors under the age of 10 also numbered 43 (4.1%), which is not insignificant. For minors, there were frequent incidents where large sums were spent on game items using credit card information registered on a guardian's mobile phone, and the guardian later requested a contract cancellation.
So-called "eat-and-run" incidents, in which online game companies based overseas abruptly terminate their services in Korea and even refuse to refund users' accumulated balances, have long been pointed out as a persistent problem.
However, the Korea Consumer Agency expects that the newly revised Game Industry Promotion Act, which will take effect in October and requires overseas game operators without a domestic address or business location to designate a domestic representative and provide contact information such as a phone number, will help prevent such issues.
The agency advised consumers to carefully check whether information such as the operator's domestic contact details is posted before making purchases when using overseas games, in order to prevent such damages.
Additionally, to prevent payment damages involving minors, the agency recommended setting up password entry for every payment and deleting credit information linked to app market accounts.
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