A US$422 million fine over Coupang\u2019s data breach has raised tensions between the US and South Korea<\/p>\n
Published Mon, Jul 20, 2026 \u00b7 08:28 AM<\/p>\n
[SEOUL] South Korea\u2019s decision to fine e-commerce firm Coupang over a data leak has drawn criticism from Washington and raised questions about the country\u2019s openness to American tech, raising worries the matter is impacting Seoul\u2019s relations with the US.<\/p>\n
The tensions surrounding Coupang, which is South Korea\u2019s biggest online retailer, though it is based in Seattle, have become serious enough that Kang Kyung Wha, Seoul\u2019s ambassador to the US, returned to the capital on Wednesday for consultations with officials in President Lee Jae Myung\u2019s administration.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe (Coupang) issue is dragging on much longer than I expected,\u201d Kang said to local media when asked about the American criticism on the issue.<\/p>\n
She added the matter would be dealt with separately from other bilateral items that have been agreed upon by the two countries. At stake is a US$350 billion South Korean pledge to invest in the US, Seoul\u2019s aspiration to build nuclear-powered submarines as well as coordination on China and North Korea.<\/p>\n
On top of the Coupang support from congressional Republicans, South Korea has been criticised by the US State Department for amending its communications laws to increase financial penalties on content publishers that have been found to spread false information online.<\/p>\n
The State Department said that it had \u201csignificant concerns\u201d that the changes could enable excessive content regulation and undermine free speech. The amendments will affect local platforms, as well as Google, Meta, X and TikTok.<\/p>\n
South Korean lawmakers told Reuters they are concerned that the Coupang case is being used by Washington as a test of Seoul\u2019s openness to US business, rather than being treated as a domestic privacy dispute.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not discrimination against an American company,\u201d ruling Democratic Party lawmaker Park Sun Won said. \u201cIt was action over a personal data leak affecting 35 million people. It would be the same for any company.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another ruling party lawmaker, Kim Young Bae, said treating the Coupang dispute as proof of an anti-US bias misreads both the facts and the broader direction of the alliance.<\/p>\n
Seoul\u2019s Foreign Ministry has also said the Coupang matter should not be linked to ongoing security negotiations, including South Korea\u2019s ambitions to build nuclear-powered submarines, a plan that US President Donald Trump endorsed last December.<\/p>\n
When asked about the Coupang dispute, a State Department spokesperson said South Korea \u201cshould not impose disproportionate burdens on US companies.\u201d The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n
Coupang referred to its past statements, saying it hoped to find a constructive resolution.<\/p>\n
A source close to the Coupang negotiations who did not want to be identified publicly due to the sensitivity of the situation said the company had for months repeatedly sought a \u201cconstructive off-ramp\u201d with Seoul, \u201cliterally hundreds of times over the last seven months.\u201d Its requests included what it called a fair technical review and an appropriate penalty.<\/p>\n
War of words<\/p>\n
The dispute began in November after Coupang said it suffered a data leak that impacted more than 33 million customers after an ex-employee in China accessed its systems.<\/p>\n