K-pop agencies are seeking to punish those who post derogatory comments about their artists online, with cases involving IU and Taeyeon being the latest examples.

A woman in her 30s was fined 3 million won ($2,140) for defamation in a trial on Tuesday after leaving malicious comments about IU.


“The expressions and contexts are derogatory toward the artist and considered pejorative,” stated the Seoul Central District Court.

The accused was brought to trial for posting four derogatory comments about IU's fashion and singing in April 2022.

SM Entertainment announced its firm stance against malicious comments about its artist Taeyeon on Monday.

“We are preparing to file lawsuits against online haters on charges of insult and defamation based on reports from the artist's fans and our monitoring results,” said the agency on the girl group Girls' Generation's social media account. "We have seen instances where some commenters faced penalties, including fines and indictment suspensions."

The agency added, "We are constantly responding to all other cases to protect our artist. We will spare no mercy for those who attempt to defame or harass our artist."

BY YOON SEUNG-JIN [yoon.seungjin@joongang.co.kr]