South Korea hits Coupang with $400M+ fine for data breach that affected millions

South Korean authorities person imposed a record-breaking good of $624 cardinal won (over $400 million) connected retail elephantine Coupang aft a information breach past twelvemonth compromised the idiosyncratic information of much than 34 cardinal customers.

Seoul’s Personal Information Protection Commission issued the maximum punishment connected Thursday pursuing find of the breach in December 2025. The retail giant, which is headquartered successful the U.S. but fashionable successful South Korea and likened to the “Amazon of Asia,” had said the months-long information breach allowed a erstwhile worker to get names, email and shipping addresses, telephone numbers and bid histories of astir two-thirds of South Korea’s population.

Coupang told BBC News that it plans to situation the regulator’s decision. The good represents a uncommon lawsuit of a fiscal punishment issued against a U.S.-based firm. Korean lawmakers have accused immoderate of their American counterparts of imposing governmental unit aft reports that U.S. representatives were linking the information breach with U.S.-South Korean bilateral ties successful effect to the lawsuit against Coupang’s executives.

U.S. companies seldom look fiscal sanctions oregon transgression prosecution for information breaches arsenic a effect of lacking laws and enforcement powers.