South Korea faces surge in digital piracy and illegal site evasion

South Korea is facing a surge in digital piracy, with illegal websites and accounts repeatedly bypassing enforcement measures. Data shows that over 16,000 cases of copyright infringement involved websites changing their web addresses to evade blocking orders between 2023 and August 2024. Approximately 67.5% of all access blocking requests were due to these repeated attempts via address changes or new alternative sites.

Specific illegal platforms have faced hundreds of blocks; ‘Huhu TV’ was blocked 205 times, ‘Ajitoon’ 146 times, and the webtoon site ‘Newtokki’ 137 times. Similarly, the number of corrective recommendations for online illegal copies has climbed annually, exceeding 1.1 million cases last year.

Lawmakers have noted that current methods of blocking individual URLs are insufficient, as search engines often allow users to easily find new addresses. There is growing pressure to strengthen the response system by cooperating with global platforms and increasing penalties for habitual infringers to protect the K-content ecosystem.