“If they were truly a company with nothing to hide…”
Koreaboo
Amidst ADOR’s public silence regarding the ongoing investigation into whether the company’s staff leaked NewJeans Hanni’s personal information, the company has seemingly made a private statement regarding its stance.
Cultural critic Kim Seong Su filed a criminal complaint against ADOR and its employees in July with allegations that the agency violated South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Act by leaking the details of Hanni’s visa information to the media, including her visa type, expiration date, and contract status.
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Separately from this investigation, an X user and fan of NewJeans shared that they filed their own civil complaint with the Personal Information Protection Commission. On August 16, despite no recent public statements from ADOR regarding the matter, the agency seemingly responded to the complaint.
We understand your complaint to be a request to verify whether ADOR complied with its obligation to notify of a personal information leak and whether measures were taken to prevent leaks…
Our Commission reviewed the facts regarding the matters raised in your complaint, including requesting explanations from representatives of ADOR (hereinafter, the “reported party”).
— Personal Information Protection Commission of South Korea
According to the Commission’s response, ADOR has claimed it did not leak Hanni’s information and that it is currently “taking measures” to prevent any further leaks, including 24/7 monitoring.
The reported party responded that the personal information of the data subject (Hanni) mentioned by the complainant was not leaked from the reported party.
The reported party also responded that, in order to prevent users’ personal information from being leaked or damaged through hacking and similar means, it is taking measures to ensure the security of personal information, including monitoring 24 hours a day through intrusion-blocking systems.
— Personal Information Protection Commission of South Korea
Unsurprisingly, fans are hitting back at ADOR for its quiet denial. In particular, the user who filed the complaint noted that the company has failed to issue any official statement confirming that it is complying with the investigation or that it intends to support police to identify the leaker.
정말로 본인들이 떳떳하고 아티스트를 아끼는 소속사라면, 오히려 이를 기회로 삼아서 경찰조사에 성실히 임하고 유출 출처를 밝히기 위해 노력하겠다는 등 진작에 공식 입장문을 냈지 않을까요?
개인정보 보호위원회 앞에서는 저렇게 당당한데 왜 대외적으로는 아직까지도 아무런 입장도 없는걸까요?
— 히터펑순기⁵ (@kmj3106321) August 16, 2026
If they were truly a company with nothing to hide and genuinely cared about their artists, wouldn’t they have taken this as an opportunity and issued an official statement long ago saying they would fully cooperate with the police investigation and work to identify the source of the leak?
They’re so confident when responding to the Personal Information Protection Commission, so why have they still not made any public statement at all?
— @kmj3106321on X
NewJeans’ parents previously noted that around 70 articles referencing Hanni’s visa details surfaced within a two-day span last February, a detail cited as evidence in Kim’s complaint against the agency. If it is proven that a member of ADOR leaked the information to the press, those responsible could face up to five years in prison or a fine of about ₩50.0 million KRW (about $35,300 USD).
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