"Coupang Privacy Leak Compensation" First Recognized... Consumer Agency Orders 100,000 Won per Person

[Financial News] The Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee at the Korea Consumer Agency has decided that Coupang must compensate each consumer 100,000 won over the company’s large-scale privacy leak. At the request of the applicants, the amount may be paid in Coupang Cash instead of cash. This is the first case in which the committee has recognized Coupang’s liability for damages over the privacy breach.
According to the Korea Consumer Agency on the 31st, the Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee decided that Coupang must pay 100,000 won in cash or 100,000 won in Coupang Cash to each of the 50 consumers who filed a group dispute mediation request against the company.
The case began on Dec. 8 last year, when 50 consumers sought compensation for damages caused by the privacy leak. After additional review, the committee launched the group dispute mediation process on April 6 and held two mediation sessions on July 10 and 22.
The committee took into account that not only members’ names, email addresses and home addresses were leaked, but also highly personal information such as apartment entrance passwords and order histories. It also considered evidence that hackers had extracted information for a substantial period, from around April to around November 2025, and had directly sent related emails to some customers, showing the potential for actual misuse.
Coupang argued that it had recovered both the leaked information and the devices used in the crime, leaving no possibility of further leakage. The committee, however, said that could not be concluded with certainty. It therefore determined that the company is liable for compensation for the mental distress suffered by consumers who had used Coupang in their daily lives.
The compensation amount was set by considering that courts in large-scale privacy leak cases have typically recognized damages in the range of 100,000 won, as well as the possibility that the leaked information could be misused in everyday life. The committee also took into account that the applicants did not submit evidence showing how they actually used the purchase vouchers worth a total of 50,000 won that Coupang provided in January.
Coupang must notify the committee within 15 days of receiving the decision whether it will accept it. If it does not express a separate position, it will be deemed to have accepted the ruling. If both sides accept the mediation proposal, it will have the same effect as a court settlement.
If Coupang accepts the decision, the committee plans to follow up with procedures such as submitting a compensation plan so that victims who did not participate in the group dispute mediation can also receive the same level of compensation.
In response, Coupang said it will decide whether to accept the ruling after internal discussions. A company official said, "We will review the Consumer Dispute Mediation Committee’s proposal carefully after receiving it."
[email protected] Kim Hyun-ji Reporter