Series Index
Part 1 | Unpaid Corporate Transactions: Liability Behind the Veil
Part 2 | Trade Name Continuity and the Liability of a Successor
Part 3 | Directors’ Liability for Damages
Part 4 | The Person Behind the Company Name
Part 5 | The Limits of Self-Defense in Assault Cases
Part 6 | Criminal Settlement Money: How Much Is Appropriate?
Part 7 | Can Quasi-Rape Be Established If One Has No Memory After Drinking?
Part 8 | Freelancers and Severance Pay: What Courts Really Examine
Part 9 | Assignment of Receivables for Business Financing
Part 10 | Can You Get Divorced If Your Foreign Spouse Disappears?
Part 11 | Can a Tenant Terminate a Lease if Repairs Are Refused?
Part 12 | Can a Subcontractor Recover Payment if the Main Contractor Disappears?
Part 13 | What You Must Know Before Your First Police Interview
Part 14 | Can a Real Estate Contract in a Land Transaction Permit Zone Be Cancelled Before Government Approval?
Part 15 | Is It Trespass to Enter Another Person's Home by Concealing Criminal Intent?
Part 16 | Impersonating Someone by Creating an Instagram Account Can Also Be a Criminal Offense
By Hong Seung-kwon
Principal Attorney, PAN Law Firm (skh@law-pan.com)
What should you do if someone creates an Instagram account using your identity and begins contacting your friends? In many cases, the fake account is removed after being reported to the platform, only for another nearly identical account to appear a few days later. Until recently, criminal prosecution for this type of conduct was difficult, but Korean law now provides a clear legal basis for treating such behavior as stalking in certain circumstances.
Article 2, Paragraph 1, Item (sa) of Korea's Act on Punishment of Stalking Crimes defines as a stalking act the use of another person's name, photograph, image, or identity through an information and communications network while pretending to be that person. The provision was added through an amendment that took effect on July 11, 2023. When such conduct is repeated, it may constitute the criminal offense of stalking.
One court case illustrates how the provision is applied. The offender found photographs posted by a former high school classmate on a personal blog, uploaded them to X (formerly Twitter) together with sexually explicit comments, and falsely presented himself as the victim. The conduct continued for approximately two months. Although the defendant argued that the victim had been unaware of the posts and therefore could not have experienced fear or anxiety, the court recognized the inherent danger of the repeated impersonation and imposed a fine of 3 million won.
This provision applies when the offender pretends to be the victim. A different legal provision applies when the offender impersonates a third party in order to approach the victim. In other words, if someone repeatedly contacts Person B while pretending to be Person A, the conduct may constitute stalking not only against Person A, whose identity has been misused, but also against Person B, who receives the repeated unwanted contact.
Courts have already recognized several examples of this type of conduct as stalking crimes. In one case, an offender impersonated the victim's former co-worker on Instagram and sent a message to the victim's child claiming, "I'm your mother's colleague. Is your mother sick? Please contact me." Other convictions involved offenders who repeatedly contacted an ex-spouse while pretending to be someone else or who impersonated employees of a message-delivery service in order to repeatedly contact a former romantic partner.
Whether conduct amounts to stalking largely depends on its repetitive nature and whether it creates fear or anxiety for the victim. The use of impersonation generally makes the circumstances more serious because it deliberately conceals the offender's identity while exploiting another person's identity. In addition, stalking offenses in Korea are no longer subject to the former "victim objection" rule, meaning that a criminal case does not automatically end even if the victim later agrees to a settlement or states that punishment is no longer desired.
Impersonating another person on Instagram or repeatedly sending unwanted messages through social media may appear relatively easy to do, but such conduct can carry significant criminal consequences under Korea's stalking laws. Anyone who becomes a victim should preserve evidence before the fake account disappears, including screenshots of the account profile, username, posts, and messages sent to others. Organizing the evidence chronologically can be valuable if a criminal complaint or legal action later becomes necessary.
As Korean courts continue to take stalking offenses more seriously, victims should not hesitate to seek legal protection when confronted with repeated online impersonation or unwanted contact.
About the Author
Attorney Hong Seung-kwon is a lawyer at Law Firm PAN, where he handles a broad range of civil and criminal litigation, with particular focus on emerging legal issues arising in the digital era. His research and practice examine how technological innovation, property rights, and evolving regulatory policies reshape legal principles and market order.
