"Double Reward Points?"... Man Exploiting System Error to Embezzle Tens of Millions, Suspended Sentence

Computer Fraud Charges

A man who embezzled tens of millions of won by exploiting a system error on a luxury brand sales site was sentenced to probation.

On the 28th, Judge Seong Jun-gyu of the Criminal Division 10 at the Seoul Western District Court announced that Mr. A (40), who was tried on charges of computer fraud and obstruction of business by computer, was sentenced to one year in prison with two years of probation.

Mr. A was indicted for unlawfully receiving approximately 23.2 million won in reward points 78 times by discovering an error in the point deduction system of a luxury brand sales platform in October 2020.

He found that when ordering products on the site, using reward points did not deduct the amount; instead, the points that were never deducted were restored, effectively doubling the original points. He then accumulated tens of millions of won in reward points by purchasing various products and subsequently canceling the orders.

The court explained the sentencing, stating, "Considering the number of times the defendant acquired the reward points, the method used, and the scale of the embezzled points, the nature of the crime is serious," but also took into account "the fact that the actual profit gained by using the embezzled points to make final purchases was only a portion of the total points, the defendant’s poor health, and the absence of prior convictions for similar crimes."

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