{
  "id": 2126881,
  "title": "Chinese national gets 20 years for hacking accounts of BTS' Jungkook, others",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/20/chinese-national-gets-20-years-for-hacking-accounts-of-bts-jungkook-2126881",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-20T11:57:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times-koreatimes",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/law-crime/20260820/chinese-national-gets-20-years-for-hacking-accounts-of-bts-jungkook-others"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "On Thursday, a Seoul court sentenced a Chinese national, surnamed Chun, to 20 years in prison for orchestrating a hacking scheme that targeted the K-pop group BTS member Jungkook and South Korean business executives. Chun was found guilty of fraud and violating the information network act, following the theft of over 38 billion won ($27.2 million) from his victims.\n\nThe court elaborated that Chun targeted wealthy individuals, successfully stealing their assets despite the victims' innocence, unlike in cases of voice phishing scams. The court further noted that Chun has not demonstrated genuine remorse for his actions.\n\nChun's transgressions were attributed to his role as a central figure in a criminal network operating overseas, with the group gathering personal information from August 2023 to January 2025. The network activated mobile phones under the victims' names and transferred assets from their accounts, according to the investigation. The victims included BTS member Jungkook and a prominent business tycoon of a major conglomerate. It is reported that the hacking group aimed to steal a total of 8.4 billion won.",
  "summary": "A Seoul court on Thursday sentenced a Chinese national to 20 years in prison for leading a hacking scheme targeting K-pop group BTS' member Jungkook and South Korean business executives. The Seoul Central District Court handed down the sentence to the Chinese national, surnamed Chun, on charges of fraud and violating the information network act, in connection with the theft of more than 38…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "Chinese national gets 20 years for hacking accounts of BTS' Jungkook, others",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/20/chinese-national-gets-20-years-for-hacking-accounts-of-bts-jungkook",
        "published": "2026-08-20T10:39:35.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Chinese national gets 20 years for hacking accounts of BTS' Jungkook, others",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/20/chinese-national-gets-20-years-for-hacking-accounts-of-bts-jungkook-2125106",
        "published": "2026-08-20T11:52:02.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}