BTS's Jungkook Victim of Stock Theft After Military Enlistment

Jungkook (정국), a member of the globally renowned group BTS (방탄소년단), has recently been revealed to have fallen victim to a hacking incident that resulted in the theft of his stocks following his military enlistment. On March 22, Big Hit Music, Jungkook's agency, confirmed to OSEN that they took immediate action upon discovering the crime, implementing measures to freeze the account and restore it to prevent any further damage.

The agency also stated that they have enhanced security protocols regarding the artist's personal information and devices to prevent future incidents.

According to reports, while Jungkook was undergoing basic military training in January of last year, a total of 33,500 shares of HYBE stock (approximately 8.3 billion KRW) were transferred to an unauthorized account without his consent. The perpetrator attempted to sell 500 shares (valued at about 100 million KRW) to a third party for profit.

In March of last year, Jungkook filed a lawsuit against the third party who purchased the shares, and in February, the Seoul Western District Court ruled that no transfer agreement had been established for the shares, confirming that Jungkook was a victim of identity theft. The court ordered the third party to return the shares to Jungkook.

The third party claimed to have acted in good faith, believing they had legitimate rights to the shares, but the court did not accept this argument. However, the individual responsible for hacking Jungkook's account has yet to be identified. Jungkook enlisted in the army on December 12, 2023, and is expected to be discharged in June.