"Girls, We Run Errands for Alcohol and Cigarettes" Trending on SNS... Do You Know 'Daelgu'?

Accounts promoting the sale of dalgu on social networking services (SNS). They are reported to receive a fixed amount of money per hour to run errands for alcohol, cigarettes, and adult products targeting teenagers. / Photo by Twitter

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[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] "We provide proxy purchases of alcohol, cigarettes, and adult products," "Direct transactions available for high school girls and older"

Recently, proxy purchasing of harmful substances such as alcohol and cigarettes targeting minors, known as 'Daelgu,' has been rampant on social networking services (SNS) like Twitter and Facebook. Daelgu sellers have been found to buy harmful substances on behalf of youths and collect fees. Such acts violate the Youth Protection Act and are illegal. Moreover, some Daelgu sellers attempt to approach minors under the pretext of direct transactions, raising concerns about potential sexual crimes.

Daelgu sales activities can be easily detected on SNS. On the morning of the 10th, entering 'Daelgu' in the search bar on Twitter and other SNS platforms yields many accounts specializing in Daelgu sales.

Some direct messages (DMs) that a Twitter Daelgu seller disclosed on their account. It appears that Daelgu sellers and teenagers mainly conduct transactions through such private messages. / Photo by Twitter capture

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These Daelgu sellers mainly earn income by running errands to purchase harmful substances like alcohol and cigarettes for minors and collecting a certain fee. Some sellers included adult products in their Daelgu product lists, and some offered 'direct transactions' targeting female youths.

In particular, direct transaction Daelgu sellers post customer 'reviews' from youths on SNS, emphasizing the safety of their services. Reviews show sellers expressing intimacy with messages like "Please use our service again," and "Contact me if needed."

Alcohol, cigarettes, narcotics, and hallucinogens are classified as 'youth harmful substances' under the Youth Protection Act, which prohibits their sale or rental to minors. Proxy purchasing of these substances also violates the Youth Protection Act. According to current law, selling, renting, or distributing alcohol or cigarettes to minors is punishable by up to two years imprisonment or a fine of up to 20 million KRW.

There are concerns that Daelgu activities could lead to more serious violent crimes. Some Daelgu sellers meet minors directly at convenience stores, nearby areas, or alleyways under the pretext of direct alcohol and cigarette transactions, or maintain continuous contact through DM (direct messages), KakaoTalk messenger, and other means. This direct transaction process raises concerns about potential sexual exploitation and crimes against minors.

A post on Twitter offering to purchase cigarettes on behalf of women. / Photo by Twitter capture

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Meanwhile, the Gyeonggi Province Special Judicial Police Unit (Special Investigation Unit) recently announced that they judged the trend of Daelgu-related posts openly appearing on SNS to be causing various social problems. They began investigations in May last year and have arrested a total of 12 individuals, all of whom have been sent to the prosecution.

The cases revealed by the Special Investigation Unit include repeatedly inducing Daelgu repurchases and providing alcohol and cigarettes to minors a total of 350 times, posting photos exposing the upper body on SNS and continuously contacting minors, and Daelgu involving not only alcohol and cigarettes but also adult products.

Regarding this, Kim Youngsoo, head of the Provincial Fair Special Investigation Unit, explained, "Daelgu targeting youths is secretly traded through SNS such as Twitter and KakaoTalk open chat rooms, making it difficult to crack down."

He added, "There is a high risk of secondary crimes such as sexual crimes against purchasing youths," emphasizing, "We plan to expand investigations strictly under a zero-tolerance policy."

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