Yes24 down for third day, triggering ripple effects across entertainment industry
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 all of Yes24’s services down, 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.”
In a statement issued Tuesday afternoon, Yes24 said its system became unavailable around 4 a.m. Monday due to a ransomware attack.
“Immediately following the incident, we implemented enhanced security measures and reported the matter to relevant authorities, including the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA),” 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.
A Yes24 official told The Korea Herald there were “no further updates” as of Wednesday morning.
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.
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 2025 “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 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, entry could be restricted at the venue. Indeed, several audience members were reportedly turned away from performances Tuesday after failing 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 separately as soon as possible.
