[instiz] NEWJEANS CAUGHT THEIR CYBERWRECKER… 100 MILLION WON DAMAGE AWARDED

Capturing NewJeans videos and making SH content… Also suggestive of simulated se**(l acts
100 million won (72K USD) damages lawsuit without agency support… Western District Court awards total of 29 million won

It has been confirmed that the girl group NewJeans recently won a lawsuit for damages against a YouTuber who SH-ed them. This case is seen as another warning against so-called “cyber wreckers”—those who continually harass K-pop artists and other celebrities online for attention or monetary gain.

Judge Lee Ah-young of the Seoul Western District Court’s Civil Division 13 ruled on June 25 that the YouTuber, identified as Mr. Shin, must pay damages to the five members of NewJeans (Minji, Hanni, Danielle, Haerin, and Hyein). The court ordered Shin to pay 5M won (~3.6K USD) each to Minji, Hanni, and Danielle, and 7M won (~5K USD) each to Haerin and Hyein. Since Shin did not appeal, the verdict was finalized on July 22.

Shin operated two YouTube accounts between April and May 2024, during which he created over 20 SH videos, including shorts, using stage footage and original content from NewJeans. He also posted malicious comments. In the videos, he distorted the group’s song lyrics, for example, changing the word “Cookie” to “G*rth” and twisting phrases like “greet brightly” into s*****ly suggestive expressions. He emphasized scenes of members holding microphones or eating cucumbers to suggest simulated se***l acts.

He also posted malicious comments such as,
“I use the term ‘original content’ differently. I mean controlling my XX g*rth,” and, “I want to make them a mom of many kids.”

In response, each of the five NewJeans members filed a 20 million won damages claim, totaling 100 million won. The lawsuit was represented by the law firm Yulchon, but their agency, ADOR, did not participate.

“Cyber wreckers,” who primarily operate on YouTube, have historically been difficult to punish due to the anonymity of the platform. This began to change when IVE’s Jang Wonyoung and her agency, Starship Entertainment, sued the YouTuber Sojang. They requested an information disclosure order from the U.S. District Court for Northern California, where Google’s headquarters are located. Google complied and provided the necessary information to identify the YouTuber. Inspired by this approach, the NewJeans side also submitted multiple requests to Google to identify Shin.

Judge Lee stated:
“It is evident from common experience that a person suffers emotional distress when their personal rights are violated through sexually explicit expression. The members of NewJeans had their personal rights infringed upon, and the defendant is liable for damages.”

Haerin and Hyein were awarded higher compensation due to being minors at the time.

1. Now that we can catch Youtubers, let’s get DC Gallery too 

2. Can we live like humans seriously

3. Wow… this one is so severe

4. So you’re saying they only awarded 29 million won in damages in a 100 million won lawsuit? Isn’t that too much? Is it that bad?

5. Wow they’ve done well. Let’s catch more of them 

6. This is so severe, they should be punished in the billions 

7. Are they insane? NewJeans are still minors

8. We need to arrest all wreckers, especially the ones who commit SH

9. Is it from the members or ADOR? 

> I saw the article and they changed it to ADOR 

10. The way they edited the articleㅋㅋ they’re so transparent