Starship Entertainment wins lawsuit against cyberbully 'Taldeok Prison Camp'

Notorious "cyber wrecker" operator faces continous defeat in lawsuits

Jang Won-young of Ive (Starship Entertainment)

Starship Entertainment, the agency behind girl group Ive, has won a partial victory in its lawsuit for damages against cyberbully YouTube channel "Taldeok Prison Camp."

On Tuesday, the court ruled in favor of Starship, ordering the channel operator, a woman surnamed Park, born in 1988, to pay 50 million won ($37,000) in damages.

The verdict will serve as a strong warning to a growing number of so-called "cyber wrecker" channels, which profit from spreading malicious, baseless rumors and defamatory content about celebrities.

From November 2022, Starship filed both civil and criminal suits against “Taldeok Prison Camp,” citing the continuous spread of false claims that severely defamed the agency and its artists, disrupted business operations, and caused significant emotional distress to both the artists and their fans. The agency initially sought 100 million won in damages.

To identify the anonymous channel operator, Starship utilized the US legal system's discovery process. They first obtained a disclosure order from a US court and demanded that the identity of the person behind "Taldeok Prison Camp" be revealed to Google's US headquarters. Park became the first anonymous Korean YouTuber to be unmasked and brought to court.

Between October 2021 and June 2023, Park uploaded 23 defamatory videos targeting seven celebrities.

Earlier this year, Jang Wonyoung also won a separate civil suit against Park, with the court ordering Park to pay another 50 million won in damages. Park has faced other lawsuits and convictions for spreading malicious rumors about other K-pop stars, including Kang Daniel, Karina, Suho, V and Jungkook.

In one such case, she was convicted in the first trial and sentenced to two years in prison, with three years' probation. The appeal is ongoing.

In a statement following the court’s decision, Starship said, “Through this ruling, we have pursued every possible civil and criminal avenue against the operator of 'Taldeok Prison Camp.' We believe this result holds her legally accountable beyond the financial gains she made from her illegal acts.”

The agency added, “This case sends a clear and powerful warning to so-called 'cyber wrecker' creators who profit from content that defames, insults or slanders others for clicks and revenue.”