[Digital Today reporter Seul-gi Son (손슬기)] The Online Damage 365 Center, a specialist counselling channel for online harm, has surpassed 10,000 consultations cumulatively. Consultations related to rights infringements such as malicious comments and privacy violations rose sharply from a year earlier.

The Broadcasting Media and Communications Commission and the Korea Information and Communication Promotion Association announced the "2025 Online Damage 365 Center consultation status" on Feb. 25. Since opening in May 2022, cumulative consultations total 10,488, with 4,181 consultations received in 2025 alone.

By type of harm in 2025, consultations related to "goods and services" were the most common at 1,723 cases, or 41.2 percent. "Cyber financial crimes" accounted for 1,014 cases, or 24.2 percent, followed by "rights infringements" at 882 cases, or 21.1 percent, and "telecommunications" at 386 cases, or 9.2 percent.

In particular, consultations on rights-infringement cases rose sharply from the previous year, from 374 cases, or 9.7 percent, to 882 cases, or 21.1 percent. Cases mainly involved damage from using personal data for purposes other than intended or signing up for social media platforms without consent, at 254 cases, and defamation through malicious comments and malicious reviews, at 178 cases. Consultations in the "content" area, such as suspensions of social media platform accounts, also increased to 109 cases from 45.

By contrast, the share of "cyber financial crimes" fell from the previous year, from 31.1 percent to 24.2 percent. Consultations related to voice phishing and smishing declined to 262 cases from 451 cases, an effect analysed as the result of strengthened government responses in the area.

By platform, Daangn Market had the most consultations at 940 cases, largely involving goods and services, at 70.5 percent, and rights infringements, at 27.1 percent. On social media platforms Instagram and Facebook, rights infringements had the highest share, at 48.4 percent and 48.8 percent, respectively, while Telegram was dominated by cyber financial crimes, at 83.9 percent.

An analysis of four years of consultation data by topic showed the top three types accounted for 53.3 percent of all cases: "second-hand trading fraud based on communities and cafes" at 19.2 percent, "investment and side-job scams based on social media and messengers" at 17.1 percent, and "damage linked to second-hand trading and social media" at 17.0 percent. In 2022, disputes over telecommunications service charges and e-commerce refunds were most common, but second-hand trading fraud and social media and messenger-based scams have since become the main types of harm.

By age group, people in their 30s accounted for 1,026 cases, or 28.9 percent, and those in their 20s accounted for 1,001 cases, or 28.2 percent, together making up more than half. Among people in their 20s to 40s, rights-infringement cases increased about 2.9 times from a year earlier. People in their 20s and 30s recorded many consultations on impersonation of job postings on social media and defamation, while those in their 40s had many consultations related to malicious reviews.