Recovery to Near Pre-Breach Levels

Coupang, South Korea's largest e-commerce platform, has recovered its user base to near post-breach levels four months after a massive personal data leak.

According to mobile analytics service Mobile Index, Coupang's weekly active users (WAU) during the second week of March (9-15) reached approximately 28.28 million. This represents only a 2.8% decline compared to early December last year (29.08 million), immediately after the breach.

In November last year, Coupang suffered a data breach involving approximately 33 million records due to hacking by a former developer. At the time, a 'Coupang exodus' phenomenon spread among some users, causing active users to plummet to the 26 million range.

Compensation and Safety Confirmation Drive Recovery

The major turning point in user recovery came on January 15, when Coupang provided affected customers with purchase vouchers worth up to 50,000 KRW per person. Following this, active users rebounded to the 27 million range, and increased to the 28 million range in March.

The government joint investigation team's February announcement that they found no evidence of the leaked information being used for secondary damage, such as dark web exploitation, also contributed to alleviating user anxiety.

Harold Rogers, Coupang Korea CEO, stated this was a "responsible action toward customers" and pledged to "fulfill our responsibility to the end." Coupang founder Kim Bom-suk also issued a formal apology, saying he felt "devastated by the disappointment customers experienced."

Profitability Improvements Run Parallel

Alongside user recovery, Coupang has also moved to improve profitability. Starting mid-next month, the company will strengthen free shipping criteria for general members without Wow membership.

Previously, free shipping was available if the pre-discount product purchase amount exceeded 19,800 KRW, but going forward, the final payment amount must exceed 19,800 KRW to receive free shipping benefits. Wow members can continue to use free shipping regardless of product price, as before.

A Coupang official explained that they "adjusted the general member delivery service standard to a level equivalent to other e-commerce platforms."

Stock prices are also recovering. Coupang's stock price listed on U.S. markets closed at $20.09 on the 19th (Korean time), up more than 16% from a month earlier.

Remaining Legal Challenges

However, legal risks surrounding Coupang remain. In the United States, a securities class action lawsuit targeting investors is ongoing, and domestically, fines have been imposed for delayed reporting of the breach incident.

CEO Rogers is scheduled to visit Coupang camps near Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province with Democratic Party lawmaker Yeom Tae-young from the afternoon of the 19th to dawn on the 20th to directly experience dawn delivery courier work. This is interpreted as proactive communication regarding excessive work issues for dawn delivery workers raised by the political community.

Rogers reportedly delivered approximately 400 small packages over about 5 hours on the 12th as a rehearsal.