'Top 1%' Dating App Personal Data Leak... Police Launch Investigation

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] The police have launched an investigation after a dating application (app) that requires multiple verification steps for high-income individuals was hacked.

According to the police on the 15th, the Cyber Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency has begun investigating the hacking incident involving the dating app "Gold Spoon."

Gold Spoon announced to its members on the 12th that "it is presumed that a cyberattack (ransomware, DDoS, hacking, etc.) occurred on the company's internal information network several days ago." The app operators also stated, "The compromised information includes ID, name, date of birth, phone number, and documents submitted within the app," and added, "The security system response and reinforcement against the cyberattack have been completed."

Gold Spoon markets itself as a dating app exclusively for the "top 1%" and is known to require members to submit supporting documents to verify their occupation and financial status. Acceptable documents include professional certifications, withholding tax receipts showing a certain level of annual income, and real estate registration documents. The membership is reported to be around 130,000. Some of the members whose information was leaked have created a KakaoTalk open chat room to discuss collective response measures.

A Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency official said, "The report was received at the end of September," and added, "We are currently in the process of verifying the facts." The Personal Information Protection Commission has also decided to conduct an investigation.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.