Yes24, the country’s largest online book retailer and a major ticketing platform, remained inaccessible for a third consecutive day Wednesday, following what the company confirmed was a ransomware attack.
The outage, which began in the early hours of Monday, brought down all of Yes24’s services, including book searches and orders, e-book access, digital library functions, community forums, and concert and performance ticketing. The homepage displayed an apology: “We sincerely apologize to all users for the inconvenience caused by service access errors.”
A Yes24 official told The Korea Herald on Wednesday there were “no further updates yet" and that they are "working to restore the site as soon as possible, within this week."
In a statement issued Tuesday afternoon, Yes24 said its system became inaccessible around 4 a.m. Monday due to a ransomware attack.
“Immediately following the incident, we implemented enhanced security measures and reported the matter to the relevant authorities, including the Korea Internet & Security Agency,” the statement read. “We are currently working to determine the exact cause of the disruption and the extent of the damage.”
The company added that internal investigations confirmed there was no breach or loss of customer personal data or order information.
Concerts, fan events and musicals caught in limbo
The outage triggered widespread disruption across the country’s entertainment industry. With the platform down, both fans and entertainment companies were left scrambling.
The music festival "Beautiful Mint Life," scheduled to take place Friday through Sunday at Olympic Park in Seoul, announced via social media that due to current access issues, ticket holders unable to cancel their reservations will be allowed to do so without any cancellation fees.
Blacklabel, the agency representing actor Park Bo-gum, announced that presale tickets for his 2025 “Be With You” fan meeting in Seoul would be postponed. Belift Lab, which manages the boy band Enhypen, said it canceled its offline fan signing event for the group’s new album “Desire: Unleash” due to the system crash. KQ Entertainment also delayed ticket sales for Ateez’s upcoming concerts in Incheon, scheduled for July 5-6. Meanwhile, the agency for rapper B.I postponed fan club presales for his “Last Paradise Tour,” originally set to begin Monday.
The disruptions extended to musical theater as well.
Shownote, the production company behind the musical “The Bridges of Madison County,” announced via social media that ticket holders who purchased tickets through Yes24 could still receive tickets if they presented proof of reservation, including seat details.
The Korean production company behind “Aladdin” issued a similar notice, asking audience members to bring either a printed or emailed copy of their reservation showing their seat details.
Without seating information, audience members may not be allowed to enter the venue. Several people were reportedly turned away from performances Tuesday when they were unable to provide verifiable ticket information from the Yes24 system. As of press time Wednesday, further disruptions were expected for upcoming performances.
Yes24 said in its notice that refund policies and additional compensation would be announced as soon as possible.
hwangdh@heraldcorp.com
