An employee of the Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) was fired from her job as punishment after she illegally accessed the personal information of K-pop boy band BTS member RM.
KORAIL operates Korea’s KTX high-speed, intercity and regional trains.
BTS' RM (right) and a KTX train in South Korea (Instagram, KORAIL)
On March 1, the Korean news program “SBS Eight O'Clock News” reported that the female employee was able to access RM’s personal information he provided when he took trains.
It said that in January 2021, RM bought a train ticket from Seoul to Dongdaegu Station in Daegu, and his itinerary was secretly viewed by the KORAIL employee.
The KORAIL employee also looked at RM’s address, phone number, and the model of his phone that he used when he registered in the train system.
It added that the employee accessed RM’s personal information 18 times in three years since 2019.
KORAIL conducted an investigation into the matter and the employee was dismissed from her job.
The employee, an information technology development staff, was handed over to a disciplinary committee on March 8 for “violation of the duty to maintain dignity,” Korean news outlet E-Daily reported.
The train system was also used by the employee to find out whether an employee of KORAIL was still employed.
KORAIL conducted a self-audit and confirmed the fact based on reports from other employees who said that the employee in question said, "I checked RM's reservation history and saw him in person," or "I let my friend know (where he seats) so he/she could get a nearby seat.”
The employee is a BTS fan and KORAIL earlier said she inquired about RM’s personal information out of simple curiosity.
Afterwards, KORAIL opened an audit committee claiming that the employee collected inappropriate personal information for non-business purposes.
During a subsequent disciplinary committee meeting, it was decided to dismiss the employee. She can appeal the decision until March 31, the report added.