Harold Rogers, interim chief govt officer of Coupang, solutions lawmakers’ questions throughout a parliamentary listening to on the corporate’s information breach on the Nationwide Meeting in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap
Coupang’s founder Kim Bom-suk got here underneath bipartisan hearth Wednesday after refusing to seem at a Nationwide Meeting listening to on the corporate’s large buyer information breach affecting greater than 33 million individuals, with lawmakers lashing out at him for evading accountability.
The much-awaited listening to came about with out the presence of the corporate’s founder, often known as Bom Kim, who’s the chairman of Coupang Inc., the father or mother firm of its Korean unit, Coupang Corp. He stated days earlier that he can be unable to attend as a result of he lives abroad and was busy with commitments in his capability as chief govt of the worldwide firm.
As an alternative, the highest govt to attend was Harold Rogers, who was appointed because the Korean unit’s interim CEO solely per week earlier, after his predecessor Park Dae-jun resigned — an appointment and attendance broadly interpreted as a defend for Kim.
Lawmakers on the Nationwide Meeting’s Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee condemned Kim for exhibiting a “disregard for each the Meeting and Korean customers.”
“We’ll take steps to launch a full parliamentary investigation,” stated committee chair Rep. Choi Min-hee of the ruling Democratic Celebration of Korea (DPK), including that Kim ought to be held accountable in accordance with the legislation and procedures.
Rep. Choi Hyung-du of the Individuals Energy Celebration (PPP) identified that executives of a lot bigger international companies, similar to Meta and Amazon, have appeared earlier than U.S. Congress when summoned. “It’s unacceptable to cover behind the title of a world CEO whereas refusing to face lawmakers over a serious incident,” he stated.
“It’s cowardly that he tries to keep away from the state of affairs by having a foreigner, who cannot converse Korean, attend on his behalf,” apparently describing Rogers’ attendance.
Rep. Kim Hyun of the DPK echoed this criticism, declaring that round 90 p.c of the corporate’s income is generated in Korea.
Rogers, in his position, apologized to Korean prospects and stated that the corporate is making ready a compensation plan for affected customers. “We’re presently reviewing a compensation bundle internally,” he stated, including that the corporate is cooperating intently with a number of regulatory authorities.
He added, “As soon as the details are absolutely confirmed by means of ongoing investigations, we’ll announce a accountable compensation plan for our prospects.”
Brett Matthes, chief data safety officer for Coupang, solutions lawmakers’ questions throughout a parliamentary listening to on the corporate’s information breach on the Nationwide Meeting in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap
Rogers emphasised that he’s the chief answerable for Coupang’s operations in Korea and would reply to lawmakers’ questions on behalf of the corporate. Nevertheless, when requested whether or not Kim would personally apologize for the incident, Rogers stated he had not mentioned the matter with the chairman. He added that he has apologized as the top of the Korean unit, and that the corporate has expressed remorse.
The listening to additionally targeted on Coupang’s inside safety practices and measures to forestall future cybersecurity incidents. Brett Matthes, Coupang’s chief data safety officer, stated the corporate took speedy steps after detecting the breach, together with disabling compromised credentials and strengthening entry controls.
Matthes informed lawmakers that Coupang is reviewing its total safety framework in coordination with regulators and exterior cybersecurity specialists. He additionally stated that the corporate plans to introduce passkey-based authentication in Korea within the first half of 2026, following an earlier rollout in Taiwan. The transfer is meant to strengthen account safety, notably as the corporate manages a big person base.
Addressing questions over the timing, Matthes stated, “It is vitally widespread for a multinational firm to roll out a brand new characteristic right into a smaller market first,” including that “there are simply complexities concerned in rolling out throughout a big person base.”
Lawmakers additionally criticized what they described as Coupang’s lack of cooperation, pointing to incomplete doc submissions and the absence of key figures. Later within the day, the committee filed complaints towards Kim and different executives who failed to seem, citing potential violations of the legislation governing testimony earlier than the Meeting.
Because the listening to concluded, each ruling and opposition lawmakers agreed that additional motion can be crucial. The committee stated it might focus on the scope and timing of a parliamentary investigation.
