SK Telecom’s data breach fallout pushed up South Korea’s August consumer inflation by nearly 0.6 percentage point, government data showed Wednesday. The consumer price index rose 3.1 percent from a year earlier, returning to the 3 percent range after easing in July. The increase was driven mainly by the fading effect of last year’s 50 percent mobile bill discount, which had cut charges for more than 20 million subscribers. Authorities said inflation should slow in September as that base effect fades, but underlying price pressures remain.
Customers wait at an SK Telecom store in central Seoul, April 29, 2025, two days after the company began offering free USIM replacements following a hacking incident that compromised subscribers’ information. Korea Times photo by Park Si-mon
The fallout from SK Telecom's data breach last year has resurfaced in consumer inflation data a year later. In an unexpected twist, a 50 percent cut in mobile phone bills for more than 20 million subscribers at the time created a base effect that pushed up last month’s consumer inflation rate by nearly 0.6 percentage point, government data showed Wednesday.
According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics, the consumer price index stood at 120.05 in August, up 3.1 percent from a year earlier.
