Police and military personnel search Kakao’s Pangyo Agit building in the Bundang district of Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, following a bomb threat on Dec. 15, 2025. Yonhap
It was 6:05 p.m. on a winter evening when a bomb threat quietly appeared on a customer service board run by one of South Korea’s largest telecommunications companies.
“The bomb will detonate at KT headquarters at 9 p.m.,” the message read. Written in a dry, almost matter-of-fact tone, the threat carried a chilling menace.
“Unless 10 billion won (about $7.5 million) is transferred to a designated online bank account, a knife attack will follow.”
Police rushed to respond. The KT headquarters building was searched floor by floor for explosives. Patrol cars swept surrounding streets while two riot police units sealed off the area, pushing the neighborhood into confusion.
Somewhere else, someone watched the unfolding fear with quiet satisfaction.
Inside a private online community, the suspect — identified by police as X — boasted about officers scrambling at the scene. With evident satisfaction, he wrote, “I’ve gone through multiple countries using VPNs, so tracing my IP address is impossible.”
Followers responded instantly. Some praised his ability to evade detection, while others mocked law enforcement. Admiration quickly gathered for the figure they portrayed as someone who had outmaneuvered both a major technology company and government authorities.
Firefighters respond to a reported bomb threat at a high school in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, Oct. 13, 2025. Courtesy of Asan Fire Station
A 'virtual nation' run by teens
Source: Korea Times News
