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SK Telecom declines mediation committee proposal for data leak victim compensation

Published: 20 Nov. 2025, 15:51

A view of an SK Telecom retail store in Jongno District, central Seoul [NEWS1]

SK Telecom has decided not to accept a proposal from the Personal Information Dispute Mediation Committee ordering the company to compensate victims of a major data leak with 300,000 won ($200) each.

The company reviewed the committee’s decision, delivered on Nov. 5, and concluded it could not accept the proposal, according to industry sources. The company is expected to submit a formal notice of nonacceptance by Thursday, the deadline.

If a mediation proposal by the committee is accepted by both parties, it carries the same legal effect as a court settlement. But if either side rejects the proposal, the case closes, and applicants must pursue separate civil lawsuits through the courts.

The main reason behind SK Telecom rejecting the proposal is believed to be concerns over enormous potential compensation costs. Although only 3,998 people — just 0.02 percent of the estimated victims — filed for mediation, applying the same compensation terms to all of the company's 23 million affected customers would amount to roughly 6.9 trillion won. SK Telecom is also believed to have already incurred more than 1 trillion won in costs responding to the hacking incident.

The mediation committee had recommended that SK Telecom pay 300,000 won to each applicant and strengthen its internal management plan and security measures for personal data systems. The compensation amount factored in nonmaterial damages, including the risk of mobile phone cloning and confusion during SIM card replacement.

After the decision was issued, SK Telecom said it was “disappointed that its voluntary and proactive compensation efforts were not fully recognized,” signaling early on that it would likely reject the proposal. In August, the company also declined a separate mediation proposal from the Korea Media and Communications Commission’s dispute panel calling for contract cancellation fee exemptions or reductions.

Around 9,000 hacking victims have separately filed a suit for damages, seeking 500,000 won each in mental suffering, with the first hearing scheduled for January. Additional lawsuits are expected, raising the prospect of a prolonged legal battle.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]