Personal data of startup support program participants leaked in cyber attack

The personal data of 20,028 individuals, including 818 participants of a government-backed startup support program, has been compromised in a recent cyberattack targeting an AI solutions company, the South Korean startups ministry announced on Friday. The breach, detected on Wednesday, exposed the names, phone numbers, and email addresses of the affected service users.

This incident follows a similar data leak in June, where personal information of 5,000 participants of the startup program was stolen in another hacking attack. The ministry had previously outlined security measures in July to enhance the program's defenses and thwart future intrusions.

Minister of SMEs and Startups Lee So-young addressed the incident during the launch of the program's second cohort in Seoul on October 20.