House Judiciary Committee Report on Coupang and South Korea

The House Judiciary Committee has put out a sharp report about how the leftist government in South Korea, which some members believe is “aligned with China,” has been discriminating against American-owned firms.

A significant focus of the report is on Coupang, an American company based in Seattle that is often referred to as the “Amazon of South Korea,” even though it operates independently of Amazon. Following a data breach, Coupang has faced intense scrutiny from the South Korean government. The company was slapped with a hefty $410 million fine—the largest privacy-related penalty in the history of South Korea.

The Judiciary Committee laid out a timeline showing Coupang’s increasing troubles with the South Korean government. This began with a covert operation involving South Korea’s National Intelligence Service that sought to indict Coupang’s interim CEO, Harold Rogers, for perjury. Interestingly, he hasn’t been formally charged yet, and he declined to comment when approached.

Last June, a former senior engineer from Coupang accessed sensitive data outside South Korea for months. Coupang’s security team confirmed that breach in November, revealing that the ex-employee had stolen authentication keys to obtain confidential information.

Coupang reported this breach to the Korea Internet Security Agency after establishing facts last November, informing them that around 3,000 accounts had been compromised.

As part of the inquiry, it was revealed that South Korean authorities had instructed Coupang to recover data stored on a laptop submerged in a river in China. This led to a clandestine mission aimed at retrieving data across the border.

Fox News Digital has reviewed video footage of the laptop recovery, showing a man in scuba gear with a Coupang bag in a murky waterway. It’s worth noting that this footage has not been independently verified.

After the recovery, Coupang’s CEO, Park Dae-joon, resigned, and Harold Rogers took his place as interim CEO. Shortly after, Rogers and other executives testified in parliament, stating that under the guidance of South Korea’s National Intelligence Service, they had engaged in the recovery of stolen data.

Even though the Judiciary Committee’s findings support Rogers’ assertions, South Korean officials quickly dismissed his claims during a parliamentary hearing, asserting they hadn’t been ordered to enter China for the laptop recovery.

The committee report includes transcripts of a meeting where South Korean officials told Coupang that they were participating in a joint investigation. Moreover, it was suggested that Coupang was “legally obligated” to cooperate.

In light of the committee’s findings, South Korean authorities are pursuing perjury charges against Rogers. Coupang was subsequently handed the enormous fine in June.

A spokesperson for Coupang expressed regret over the situation that led to the Judiciary Committee’s investigation and emphasized their desire to be a bridge for strengthening the U.S.-South Korean alliance.

Despite this, a South Korean embassy spokesperson maintained that the government is committed to ensuring a fair business environment for all companies and rejected the report’s characterization based on what they labeled as one-sided assertions from Coupang.

The representative elaborated that the imposed sanctions were lawful and that they were less than the maximum penalties allowed. They also noted that Coupang has the right to contest the decision in court.

As the fallout from this incident unfolded, Coupang’s stock took a hit, dropping over 45% following the breach announcement and government retaliation.

Interestingly, some 50 House members have voiced concerns that South Korea’s leftist government is favoring China and targeting American businesses.

The political landscape in South Korea has undergone significant changes recently, particularly after the impeachment of a conservative figure, Yoon Seok-yeol, in December 2024. His successor, from the Democratic Party, now leads a government that holds a majority in the National Assembly. 

In an interview, Rep. Darrell Issa expressed worries about South Korea distancing itself from the U.S., cautioning that the current left-leaning government seems to be attacking American companies. He described Coupang as being systematically targeted because it symbolizes American entrepreneurship in South Korea.

Furthermore, a report estimated that ongoing discriminatory policies could cost the U.S. economy around $525 billion over the next decade, affecting multiple states heavily.

Pending legislation in South Korea aims to expand the powers of the Korea Fair Trade Commission, which has received criticism for allegedly targeting U.S. companies. An economist has warned that moving forward, the regulations could continue to make South Korea a less favorable location for American businesses.