HYBE has identified and sued a group involved in the illegal trade of artist flight ticket information.
On the 18th, HYBE officially stated, “We have been informed that the operators of social media accounts, suspected of illegally acquiring and trading the flight ticket information of our affiliated artists, have been referred to the prosecution.”
Previously, HYBE had established a separate task force last year to address the illegal trade of K-pop artists’ flight ticket information. They identified multiple social media accounts engaged in such activities and secured evidence, which was submitted to the police.
The police conducted long-term domestic and international investigations based on this evidence, confirmed the suspicions against some suspects, and transferred them to the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office. According to the investigation findings, it was confirmed that the suspects had made profits ranging from tens of thousands to millions of U.S. dollars by selling artist flight ticket information.
The illegally traded information was used for stalking purposes, where individuals obtained advanced knowledge of artists’ seating arrangements and attempted to board the same flights or make close contact. Moreover, cases were identified where they arbitrarily changed the artists’ seats and meal preferences, or canceled flight reservations, causing disruptions to schedules and impacting overall artist activities and entertainment company operations.
HYBE stated, “The act of selling or purchasing flight ticket information acquired illegally poses a clear legal violation that threatens the artists’ safety and fosters insecurity, potentially leading to serious incidents at airports and on airplanes,” adding, “We will adopt a zero-tolerance policy towards crimes involving the commodification and trading of artists’ personal information, holding responsible parties fully accountable without any compromise or leniency.”
Along with artists affiliated with HYBE, it is known that numerous idol groups and actors have also reported their damages due to the leakage of flight ticket information.
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