Seoul: Coupang Inc. founder Kim Bom-suk has announced he will not attend the upcoming parliamentary hearing concerning the company's massive data breach, as revealed by a lawmaker on Sunday. This marks another instance of Kim's absence from discussions regarding the breach that impacted nearly 34 million individuals.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Kim, who serves as the chairman of the board at Coupang, cited his overseas residence and a "prearranged schedule" as reasons for his non-attendance at the hearing scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Rep. Choi Min-hee of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) confirmed Kim's submission of a statement explaining his non-appearance.

Kim's brother, Yoo Kim, head of Coupang's global operational excellence, and Kang Han-seung, former CEO of Coupang's Korea unit, have also submitted statements of non-appearance, as indicated by the lawmaker. In response, Choi, who chairs the National Assembly's Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee, expressed disapproval through a social media post.

Last Thursday, Coupang reported it had identified the former employee responsible for the data breach using forensic evidence, recovered the equipment involved, and obtained a confession from the individual. The government, however, has described these investigation results as a "unilateral claim," emphasizing that the joint public-private investigation initiated last month has not yet disclosed any findings.