Shocking Data Breach: What You Need to Know About Woowa Brothers’ Customer Info Scandal

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On March 30, Woowa Brothers, the operator of the delivery app Baedal Minjok (Baemin), apologized to customers affected after an organized criminal who had posed as an employee at one of its outsourced customer-service contractors misused customer data. The company said it will implement measures to prevent a recurrence.

In a statement, Woowa Brothers said it regards the incident as extremely serious, is fully cooperating with the police investigation, and is taking follow-up measures promptly.

The company said it proactively reported cases in which authorities confirmed data misuse to the Personal Information Protection Commission and has been notifying customers whose information may have been accessed. It emphasized it will take necessary steps if additional harm is identified or if investigators request further action.

Woowa Brothers is conducting a full audit of the contractor’s handling of customer data and is moving forward with contract termination procedures. It also plans to strengthen internal controls by tightening hiring standards for customer-service staff and increasing oversight.

Earlier, Seoul’s Yangcheon police arrested a group accused of carrying out paid revenge attacks—such as throwing filth at victims’ front doors. Investigators say the group accepted requests via Telegram and then infiltrated Baemin’s contractor by posing as call-center agents to steal customer information for use in their crimes.

The Personal Information Protection Commission, which received Woowa Brothers’ report, has launched a formal investigation. A commission official said it will review Baedal Minjok’s customer data management practices after examining the internal network access logs submitted as evidence.