Stickers that read “Coupang is a murderer,” “Coupang is a criminal” and “delivery of death” are put on the entrance to Coupang’s office building in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap
Coupang has drawn strong backlash after announcing on Monday that it would compensate each of the 33.7 million users affected by last month’s data breach by distributing vouchers worth 50,000 won ($35).
Describing the vouchers as “bait,” critics argued that the compensation plan is merely intended to lure consumers into spending more money on the e-commerce platform rather than offering a sincere apology.
According to the company, on Jan. 15, each user will receive two 5,000 won vouchers that can be used respectively on its main shopping app and the Coupang Eats food delivery service, as well as two 20,000 won vouchers that can be used respectively on Coupang Travel for flight and accommodation bookings and on R.LUX, its luxury shopping platform.
Those who have stopped using Coupang’s services will also be eligible to receive the vouchers via text message.
“We decided to establish a compensation plan worth 1.68 trillion won to take responsibility for the recent leak of personal information and to restore customer trust,” Coupang said in a press release.
Coupang interim CEO Harold Rogers echoed that message.
Civic groups condemn Coupang and its founder Kim Bom-suk during a press conference in front of the company’s building in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap
Civic groups, citizens and political groups condemned Coupang’s plan as another attempt to deceive the public, designed for its own commercial gain after the information of 33.7 million customers was compromised.
People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy called the plan more regressive than SK Telecom’s response to its data breach in April. The telecom company halved its users’ monthly bills in August, offered an additional 50 gigabytes of data every month until the end of this year and distributed discount coupons usable at certain franchise restaurants and coffee shops.
“This is a trick to boost Coupang’s revenue,” the civic group said. “Providing 20,000 won vouchers that can only be used for Coupang’s least popular services such as Coupang Travel and R.LUX is another scheme to expand its market share in travel booking and luxury shopping.”
The Korea National Council on Consumer Organizations also criticized Coupang for trying to induce customers to return to the platform and make additional purchases.
“This is a direct violation of the principle of cash compensation for breaches of personal information and psychological damage,” the group said.
Politicians joined the criticism of the compensation plan, announced just one day before the National Assembly’s two-day joint hearing on the cybersecurity incident.
“I have never heard of Coupang Travel and R.LUX,” Rep. Choi Min-hee of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), who chairs the National Assembly’s Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee, wrote on social media. “By promoting services that no one uses, Coupang is trying to turn this crisis into an opportunity to boost sales.”
Rep. Jeon Yong-gi, another DPK lawmaker, described the vouchers as “bait” to deceive the public and evade responsibility. He also criticized Coupang founder Kim Bom-suk for again refusing to attend the National Assembly hearing, following his absence from the previous session on Dec. 17.
Kim cited his residence and business abroad as the reason for his absence at the hearing, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. He issued only a written apology on Sunday, nearly a month after the data breach was revealed.
Later on Monday, the pan-governmental task force on the Coupang case held a meeting to discuss all possible measures against the data breach.
The task force said the Fair Trade Commission will take the company’s compensation plan into account when determining whether to suspend its operations.
“It cannot be justifiable if a company grown with the public’s trust tries to avoid taking responsibility,” said Bae Kyung-hoon, deputy prime minister and minister of science and ICT, who chairs the task force. “Coupang’s leak of data belonging to more than 30 million users is a clear violation of Korean law.”
