Victims of a massive personal data breach at Duo, a Korean matchmaking company, have filed a damages lawsuit. It is the first class action related to the Duo data breach incident.
Law firm LKB & Partners said Tuesday that it filed a class-action damages suit against Duo at the Seoul Central District Court on the 6th of this month, representing 46 victims.
According to LKB & Partners, the victims are seeking 1 million won ($720) each in compensation for emotional distress. The amount is higher than the 100,000 to 500,000 won range typically claimed in personal data breach cases. "The gravity of the harm is significant given that private information closely tied to personal life, held by a matchmaking company, was leaked," LKB & Partners said. "Among the victims, there is considerable anxiety and concern that intimate personal information, including marital history, has been exposed externally."
According to the Personal Information Protection Commission, the work computer of a Duo employee handling personal data was hacked in January last year, resulting in the external leak of personal information of 427,464 members. The leaked data included IDs, passwords, names, dates of birth, resident registration numbers, religion, hobbies, marital history, school names, majors and workplace names.
Attorney Jung Tae-won, head of LKB & Partners' class action center, said, "Given the sensitivity of the information held by a matchmaking company, its responsibility cannot be taken lightly." He added, "I hope this lawsuit will serve as an opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of personal data protection."
