BTS is facing controversy as a group of individuals who leaked flight information have been referred to prosecution.
The Seoul Metropolitan Police have sent three suspects, including an employee from a foreign airline, to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. They’ve been charged with violating the Information and Communications Network Act among other offenses.
Mr. A and his accomplices illegally accessed the flight details of BTS and other celebrities. They sold this info to brokers and raked in tens of millions of won. These brokers spread the information in messenger chat rooms and social media DMs.
Police tracked down how Mr. A obtained this sensitive data and followed financial transactions revealing the profit structure and roles of all involved.
The controversy began as breech of artists’ personal details has long plagued the K-pop industry. Fans, known as “sasaengs,” took advantage of leaks to alter travel plans, board the same flights, or even change in-flight meal preferences without consent. This has disrupted schedules and caused serious issues.
To tackle this problem, HYBE, BTS’s agency, formed a dedicated task force in 2023 to report such cases to authorities. They also monitored social media accounts involved in the illegal trading of flight information.
Thanks to this cooperation, police arrested Mr. A in February and two others in March.
HYBE responded strongly:
“We will fully cooperate with the authorities during the remaining investigation and legal proceedings.”
They added,
“We will apply a zero-tolerance policy and pursue strong legal action without settlement or leniency against anyone involved in criminal activities that commodify and trade artists’ personal information.”
Stay tuned for more updates on this developing situation.
