Korean Police Arrest Seven Over AI-Assisted Hacking of 90 Organizations

Oct 26, 2026
South Korean police arrested seven people accused of using generative AI to hack about 90 organizations and steal 8.2 million records.

South Korean police arrested seven people accused of using generative AI to hack about 90 organizations, steal 8.2 million records and extort their victims, Korea JoongAng Daily reported. Police called it the first case in Korea in which suspects in a large-scale AI-assisted hacking operation were caught.

Between September 2025 and October 2026, the group allegedly broke into hospitals, golf courses, universities, private academies and subsidiaries of major conglomerates, taking personal information and internal documents. They then emailed threats to 38 of the organizations, demanding a combined 360 million won ($272,000) to keep the data private.

The alleged ringleader, a self-taught hacker who had worked in penetration testing, began using generative AI heavily in August, which police said greatly expanded the operation. He was arrested on Oct. 15 and referred to prosecutors on Friday. Police said they recovered all stolen records containing personal information.

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