Coupang Victims File Class-Action Suit in U.S., Seek Punitive Damages

"The Essence of the Coupang Incident: Personal Data of Over 33 Million Members Leaked"

On February 6 (local time), consumers harmed by the personal data leak at Coupang filed a class-action lawsuit in a U.S. court, seeking punitive damages from Coupang's U.S. parent company.

Kim Gukil, Managing Representative of Daeryun Law Firm (second from left), is holding a press conference on the 6th (local time) in front of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in New York regarding the class-action lawsuit against Coupang by victims. Yonhap News

According to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, victims of the Coupang data leak, with U.S. citizens identified by the surnames Lee and Park as representative plaintiffs, filed a damages lawsuit that day against Coupang Inc., Coupang's parent company, and Board Chairman Bom Suk Kim. Coupang Inc. is the parent company that holds 100% of the shares in Coupang's Korean subsidiary.

In the complaint submitted to the court that day, Lee and others argued that Coupang Inc. was negligent in breaching its duty to protect personal information, and that this constitutes a breach of an implied contract. They also claimed that the company gained unjust enrichment by failing to implement appropriate security measures and violated New York State law prohibiting deceptive business practices.

Tal Hirschberg, an attorney at the law firm SJKP representing the plaintiffs, explained the reason for filing the lawsuit in the United States during a press conference after submitting the complaint, saying, "Coupang Inc. was established under U.S. corporate law and owes a duty to everyone who uses Coupang, including Americans as well as Koreans."

Kim Gukil, Managing Representative of Daeryun Law Firm, SJKP's Korean partner, said at the press conference, "The essence of the Coupang incident is that the personal information of more than 33 million members was leaked, and dealing with this issue must be the top priority," adding, "We are convinced that the class-action lawsuit being filed today is what the affected members want most and is also the most fundamental lawsuit."

The complaint did not specify the exact number of participants in the lawsuit. Attorney Hirschberg explained that, so far, more than 7,000 victims of the data leak have contacted them regarding participation in the class action.

The Coupang lawsuit in the United States is expected to proceed separately from the lawsuits filed in Korean courts. It is also expected to proceed independently from the shareholder class-action lawsuit previously filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.