Personal Information Leaks Spark Wave of Lawsuits

More Than 10 SK Telecom Cases Begin January 19
Dozens of Coupang Cases Filed Within Two Months

Civil trials related to the large-scale personal information leak that occurred in 2025 will begin in earnest this year (2026). A class action lawsuit against Lotte Card is already underway, and a class action against SK Telecom will also begin on January 19. Some law firms are preparing to recruit plaintiffs and file lawsuits regarding the incidents involving Shinhan Card and KT.

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Cases Involving Over 9,000 Plaintiffs

More than 10 class action lawsuits have been filed against SK Telecom. On January 19, mediation proceedings will be held for a damages lawsuit filed by Yang and 241 others against SK Telecom, with Law Firm Logos representing the plaintiffs. On January 21, Judge Lee Baekgyu of the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 96 will hear the case filed by Kang and 201 others, with Law Firm LKB Pyeongsan representing the plaintiffs. On February 11, a hearing will be held for the lawsuit filed by Kwon and 425 others, presided over by Chief Judge Bang Changhyun of the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 83, with Law Firm Dasan representing the plaintiffs. On March 26, two cases will proceed under the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 30 (Chief Judge Kim Seokbeom), involving Kim and 9,165 others and Kang and 1,458 others. Law Office Lopid and Law Office Want Kyung&Jung are representing the plaintiffs in these respective cases.

In addition, lawsuits have been filed by Hwang Hae of Law Firm The H representing 1,000 plaintiffs, Law Firm Turtle representing 53 plaintiffs, Law Firm Rojipsa representing 426 plaintiffs, and Nova Law Office representing about 20,000 plaintiffs. The hearing schedules for these cases have not yet been set.

Coupang Faces More Civil and Criminal Cases

Coupang faced dozens of class action lawsuits within two months of the incident in November 2025. The damages lawsuit filed by Son and 2,069 others, represented by LKB Pyeongsan, is being handled by the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 21, while the lawsuit by Kim and 2,140 others is being handled by Civil Division 22. Hwang Hae of The H filed eight separate cases. Law Offices Beonhwa, Lopid, Cheong, and Hoin are also representing multiple plaintiffs.

Law Firm Jihyang has filed 16 civil lawsuits and simultaneously filed a criminal complaint against Bom Kim, Chairman of Coupang Inc., and Harold Rogers, CEO of Coupang Korea.

As many law firms are still recruiting plaintiffs for cases against Coupang, the number of civil and criminal lawsuits is expected to increase further.

Shinhan Card and KT Lawsuits on the Horizon

In the case of Lotte Card, where the personal information of approximately 2.9 million people was leaked, a damages lawsuit filed by Kang and 242 others is currently being heard by Judge Kang Hayoung of the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 32. Lotte Card is not an affiliate of the Lotte Group. MBK Partners acquired a 79.83% stake for 1.381 trillion won.

Law Office Lopid is currently recruiting plaintiffs for a class action against Shinhan Card, which is believed to have leaked information of about 190,000 franchise owners. Some law firms are also considering recruiting plaintiffs for a class action against KT, which leaked information of about 20,000 people due to unauthorized small payments.

Lee Sangwoo, The Law Times Reporter

Shin Nayoung, The Law Times Reporter

※This article is based on content supplied by Law Times.