Small Payment Fraud Hits Specific Mobile Carrier Customers in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi... KISA "Fact-Checking Underway"

Small Payment Fraud Occurs Mainly in Early Morning Hours Since Late Last Month
Police Launch Investigation; KISA Also Working to Determine the Facts

In Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi Province, an incident occurred in which more than 20 customers of a specific mobile carrier lost hundreds of thousands of won each through small payments made via their mobile phones. Police have launched an investigation, suspecting a hacking-related crime, and relevant authorities are also working to determine the facts.

According to the IT industry and the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) on September 4, dozens of KT users living in Soha-dong, Gwangmyeong, suffered financial losses of hundreds of thousands of won each at the end of last month. The losses occurred mainly during the early morning hours, with payments made for mobile gift certificates and transportation card top-ups via their mobile phones.

Hacking.

The total amount of damages is reported to be around 17 million won. Police are currently investigating after receiving reports from the victims. All of the victims reside in Soha-dong, Gwangmyeong, and it has been reported that some of them live in the same apartment complex.

Posts about small payment fraud continued to appear on a local online community for Gwangmyeong residents on September 3 and 4, suggesting that the scale of the damage could increase. One victim claimed that even though they did not receive any membership registration or payment verification text messages from the gift certificate purchase site, their payment limit was raised and small payments were processed.

The Gwangmyeong Police Station, which received the reports, is focusing on the possibility of a hacking crime and has transferred the case to the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency. It remains unclear whether the incident was caused by a hack of KT headquarters' internal network or by information theft from the mobile carrier's distribution network.

KISA, which investigates cyber intrusions, is also working to determine the facts of the case. A KISA official stated, "We are currently in the early stages of fact-checking," and added, "We are also checking whether any technical support is needed."