Seoul police arrest seven who used generative AI to hack about 90 Korean organizations and take 8.2 million records, then demanded 360 million won from 38 of them

Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency; a self-taught coder named as ringleader and six accomplices; about 90 victim organizations including hospitals, golf courses, universities, private academies and conglomerate subsidiaries

The Korea JoongAng Daily reported on Oct 26 (16:38 KST) that Seoul police had arrested seven people for using generative AI to hack about 90 Korean organizations between September 2025 and October 2026, stealing 8.2 million records of personal information and internal documents. The group sent threatening emails to 38 organizations demanding a combined 360 million won (about $272,000) to keep the data private, and an accomplice recruited people through Telegram to call and text employees of the targeted organizations to press them to pay. The investigation began in June after a victim's complaint; six suspects were arrested between July and September and the alleged ringleader, who had no IT training and is reported to have taught himself through online resources, on Oct 15. Police say they recovered all of the stolen personal records and describe it as Korea's first arrest in a large-scale AI-assisted hacking case; a police official said the investigation into accomplices and further victims continues.