Former Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae took responsibility for damages after disclosing the reporter's real name and phone number to social networking services (SNS).
Senior Judge Kim Chang-bo of the Seoul Central District Court for Civil Affairs 1004 today (29th) ruled in favor of part of the plaintiff's lawsuit for damages filed by Internet media reporter Mr. A against former Minister Choo.
The court ordered former Minister Chu to pay 2 million won to Mr.
On October 21, last year, Mr. A reported that a person believed to be a key member of the Seongnam International Mafia took a picture with major figures of the ruling party at the time, including former Minister Choo and Rep. Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party of Korea.
Former Minister Chu published the contents of a text message he shared with a reporter on his Facebook page with the caption, "Young reporter! I hope you don't grow old too quickly."
The text message revealed the reporter's real name and phone number.
After the controversy, former Minister Chu hid part of his phone number.
On the 29th of the same month, Mr. A filed a claim for damages of 20 million won against former Minister Choo.
He is said to have claimed that former Minister Chu suffered mental pain by committing illegal acts such as violating the Personal Information Protection Act and defamation.