Talent agencies of actors Byun Woo-seok, Gong Seung-yeon, and Yoo Seung-ho have made public warnings of a widening identity theft fraud that is targeting shopkeepers and small business people.
The agency of Byun and Gong, Baro Entertainment, also released a statement announcing that impostors have been pretending to be the agency staff to ask for products as well as money with pretenses.
"We wish to warn the public that there have been scams as of late where individuals are impersonating our staff with the aim to extort money," the agency said.
The perpetrators have destroyed businesses — most of them small vendors — by contacting companies as the management of the company's celebrities, according to Baro Entertainment.
Fraudsters make absurd order requests (like expensive wine) due to company events or dinners that are supposedly going to be hosted.
They disappear after the deal is struck, leaving their suppliers in the lurch financially.
(The agency stressed "we will NEVER ask for any money transfer done by our part; product purchase never.")
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"Any such request should be assumed to be illegal. We urge you to exercise extreme care to prevent further damage," the agency added.
Baro Entertainment promised it would take legal action against the fraudsters responsible for the activity and vowed to safeguard its artists as well as the wider public.
The impersonation OS scam seems to point to a larger pattern that the entire Korean entertainment industry is going through. Last May 6, PocketDol Studio, the company of trot singer Song Ga-in, also submitted a similar claim.
Scammers pretending to be her manager allegedly emailed vendors with fake orders for wine for an event that they said was brewing, and false promises of payment later.
"Our employees never demand money or compensation of any kind," the agency said.
There's a message on the social media account where Song Ga-in is referring to these problems, as she warned fans and business operators on the same: "Please watch out, I don't want you to go on bad or losing side by become a victim of fraud."
A similar warning was issued from Yoo Seung-ho's agency, 333, on April 11 (KST), stating that they have seen an influx of fake social media accounts and impostors pretending they are the actor or placing themselves in the position of management teams.
"His only official social media account is Instagram," the agency said, warning fans to be alert.
As attacks continue, organisations are strengthening their public messaging and advising staff to validate all business-related communications via official channels.
"This type of fraud doesn't just harm companies, it ruins the reputation of our artists," one representative from an agency said. "We will do everything we need to do to hold people accountable."
