[Official] HYBE sues group that illegally trades artist air ticket information

HYBE said it had received notice that the operator of a social media account suspected of illegally obtaining and trading airline ticket information for its artists had been referred to prosecutors.
HYBE formed a separate TF last year to deal with the illegal trading of K-POP artists' air ticket information. HYBE is involved in a number of online transactions involving the trading of artists' air ticket information.
After checking the SNS account, we obtained evidence that could identify the operator and submitted it to the police. Based on the evidence, the police will continue to conduct investigations at home and abroad for a long time and confirm the charges against some of the suspects.
The case was referred to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. Police investigation revealed that the suspects had bought and sold airline ticket information for artists, making tens of millions to hundreds of millions of won.
It was confirmed that the suspects illegally traded airline ticket information for K-POP artists via chat rooms and direct messages (DMs).
The illegally traded information was used to find out the seating arrangement of artists in advance, and to stalk them after boarding the same flight and attempting close contact.
The attacks included deliberately changing passengers' seats and in-flight meals, and cancelling flight reservations, disrupting schedules.
HYBE said, "The act of selling or purchasing illegally obtained airline ticket information threatens the personal safety of our artists.
"This is clearly an illegal act that creates insecurity and is a very serious problem that could lead to safety accidents at airports and on airplanes," he said. "The commodification and trading of artists' personal information is a serious problem."
"We will take a firm stance on any criminal acts committed by those involved, with a zero-tolerance policy and no compromises or leniency, and will hold those responsible to account until the very end," the statement said.
HYBE has revised the relevant procedures and systems to prevent further leaks of artists' personal information, including airline ticket information.
They carried out inspections and requested cooperation from airlines and travel agencies.