About 72% of S. Korean Adults Affected by Data Raid

A cybercrime ringleader received much of the data – including names, resident registration numbers, account names and passwords -- from a Chinese hacker, who he met in an online game in 2011.

The leader then used the personal information to steal online game currency “with a hacking tool known as an ‘extractor,’ which automatically logs on to a user’s accounts once the login and password are entered,” Korea JoongAng Daily reports. “He is also thought to have sold those cyber items for profit.”

The main perp made over $390,000 by hijacking six games in South Korea, according to Taiwan-based WantChinaTimes.com.  And the stolen data was sold for $0.001 to $20 per item, based on its value to mortgage fraud scammers and illegal gambling advertisers.

The leader was arrested along with other conspirators for stealing and selling more than 220 million records from 27 million South Koreans. The victims ranged in age from 15 to 65. The Chinese hacker is still on the run, according to Duowei News, a website operated by Chinese based in the United States.

Hundreds of people were cheated by the swindlers between September 2012 and November 2013.