Industry — Data Breach
Executive Summary
Data breach reported by DataBreaches.net — Lotte Card fined 9.6 billion won for leaking users’ social registration numbers: Korea JoongAng Daily reports: Lotte Card was fined 9.6 billion won ($6.5 million) by the Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) after 450,000 users’ social registration numbers were leaked. The PIPC decided to impose an administrative fine of 9.62 billion won and a...
What Happened
Lotte Card was fined 9.6 billion won, equivalent to approximately $6.5 million, by Korea's Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) in March 2026. The fine was imposed after 450,000 users' social registration numbers were leaked due to violations of personal information protection laws. The PIPC levied an administrative fine of 9.62 billion won and an additional penalty of 4.8 million won against the company.
Who Is Affected
Approximately 450,000 Lotte Card users had their social registration numbers exposed in this breach. Social registration numbers are sensitive government-issued identifiers used in South Korea that can enable identity theft and fraud when compromised.
Why It Matters
This breach represents a significant failure to protect highly sensitive personal identification data that is fundamental to citizens' identity in South Korea. The substantial fine of $6.5 million demonstrates regulatory enforcement of personal information protection laws and sets a precedent for accountability when financial institutions fail to adequately safeguard customer data.
AI-Assisted
Event summaries are generated by Claude AI from verified sources and reviewed by humans before publication.