Daeryun: "580 People Apply for SKT Hacking Damages of 1 Million Won Each"

Second Damages Complaint Filed
"SKT Focused on Concealing Hacking Incident"

Son Gyejun, Yeo Sangwon, and Cho Younggon, lawyers from Daeryun Law Firm (from left), are announcing a damages lawsuit related to the SKT personal information leak case in front of the Seoul Central District Court on the 27th of last month. Provided by Daeryun

Daeryun Law Firm announced that, as of June 13, the number of people who have applied for civil damages related to the SK Telecom hacking incident has reached 580.

Daeryun filed a second complaint for damages with the Seoul Central District Court on behalf of 331 victims as of June 12. Including those who participated in the first civil lawsuit filed on May 27, a total of 580 people have now joined the damages procedure through Daeryun.

Daeryun is pursuing not only civil but also criminal lawsuits against SK Telecom. On June 5, following the first round on May 1, the firm filed criminal complaints with the Namdaemun Police Station in Seoul against SK Telecom CEO Yoo Youngsang and those responsible for security, representing 43 victims secured through its second recruitment.

The charges are the same as in the first round, including breach of duty and business obstruction, with the core issue being SK Telecom's negligence of its information protection obligations as a telecommunications provider. As a result, the total number of people participating in the criminal lawsuit is now 57.

Daeryun has established a legal response system for this class action led by the "Special Task Force" (Teuksu-bu), headed by lawyer Cho Younggon, a former chief prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and lawyer Yeo Sangwon, a former Supreme Court judicial researcher.

Yeo Sangwon explained, "A tremendous number of victims have been affected, and we plan to actively assert both the direct and additional damages that occurred as SK Telecom focused on concealing the hacking incident during the response process, as well as the anxiety victims experienced over the exposure of their personal information."

Yeo Sangwon emphasized, "This is an exceptional case in which SK Telecom's serious negligence has been objectively revealed. If the results of the upcoming joint public-private investigation are used as evidence, SK Telecom's liability for damages could be recognized."