Gov't launches probe into purported attempt to sell SK Telecom client data

The science ministry said Tuesday it has launched an official probe into a purported attempt to sell personal data allegedly leaked from South Korea's top mobile carrier SK Telecom. The move came after a global hacking group, Scattered Lapsus$, posted on its Telegram channel that it would sell SK Telecom's client data for $10,000, adding that 42 South Koreans had already made contact. "After being aware that a global hacking group has seized SK Telecom's client data and is seeking to sell it, we requested the mobile carrier to submit related materials and plan to check the facts through on-site inspections," the Ministry of Science and ICT said. The group claimed the data includes customers' IDs, names, phone numbers, emails, addresses and birth dates. The group also threatened SK Telecom, saying it must engage in negotiations or all of the 27 million users' data would be released. The company reported in April that private data of its entire user base may have been leaked in a cyberattack on its network servers. The government also recently launched a probe against No. 2 mobile carrier KTWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times