Singer Kim Gun-mo. [Yonhap]
Singer Kim Gun-mo. [Yonhap]

Singer Kim Gun-mo, who was cleared of sexual assault allegations, has been revealed to have come forward as a whistleblower on behalf of victims of so-called "cyber wreckers" — a term for online content creators who spread damaging rumors for profit — a documentary has shown.

According to Wavve, the documentary "Predators: Cyber Wreckers, a Record of the War," released Friday, spotlights Kim's case as an example of how cyber wrecker allegations can upend a person's life and cause years of suffering.

Kim was engulfed in controversy in December 2019 after the YouTube channel Garosero Research Institute, also known as Gaseyon, raised sexual misconduct allegations against him. As the claims spread, he faced fierce public backlash and suffered serious damage to the image and career he had built over decades. The case was closed in November 2022 when police decided not to refer it for prosecution.

Reporter Kang Gyeong-yun, who appeared in the documentary, described what Kim went through at the time. "Everything he had built over 28 years collapsed in a single week because of the cyber wrecker's exposé," she said. "He told me he thought about ending his life more than once."

The documentary also revealed how police came to launch a full-scale investigation in 2022 into the spread of false information by cyber wreckers.

"Kim Gun-mo found the courage to come forward as an informant and filed a public interest report on behalf of victims around him," police said. "Through the investigation, we confirmed at least 12 victims — all celebrities, athletes and entrepreneurs for whom public image is critical."

Businessman Eun Hyeon-jang also appeared in the program, revealing the severe psychological toll he endured after being caught up in allegations of involvement in illicit remittances to North Korea and stock price manipulation. "I was forced to shut down my YouTube channel and my business took a serious hit," he said.

The Wavve original documentary "Predators: Cyber Wreckers, a Record of the War" traces the practices of cyber wreckers who have built their influence by consuming others' lives as content, and follows the victims' efforts to fight back. On its release day, it ranked second overall on Wavve in driving new paid subscriptions across all genres and first in the news and current affairs category.


min3654@heraldcorp.com