[Edaily Reporter KIM JUNG YOU ] Coupang has been identified as the company that invested the most in information security within the domestic retail industry last year. For the first time ever, its information security investment exceeded 100 billion won, and the number of employees in that field increased by about 160 over the course of a year, according to the survey.

According to the Korea Internet & Security Agency on the 30th, Coupang’s investment in information security last year totaled 134,936.72 million won, a 51.6% increase from the previous year. Coupang’s investment in information security—which stood at 63.9 billion won in 2022, 65.9 billion won in 2023, and 88.9 billion won in 2024—has more than doubled over the past three years. This investment includes system maintenance, external consulting fees, personnel costs, and training expenses.

In addition, Coupang’s investment in information technology (IT) rose 34.2% year-over-year to 2.5725 trillion won. Consequently, the share of information security investment relative to total IT investment rose 0.6 percentage points year-over-year to 5.2%.

The number of dedicated information security personnel reached 370.1 last year, a 75% increase from the previous year. Of these, 204.8 were Coupang employees, and 165.3 were outsourced staff. The growth rate of dedicated information security personnel was 10 times higher than the year-over-year growth rate of Coupang’s total workforce (12,137 employees), which was 7.4%.

Coupang explained, “Investment in information security increased due to factors such as the expansion of our dedicated information security workforce (28.7 billion won) and higher outsourcing costs for system development, maintenance, and support (29.3 billion won).”

Coupang is expected to maintain its position as the top investor in information security within the domestic retail industry this year as well. Since 2022, when information security disclosure became mandatory, Coupang has ranked first in information security investment among wholesale and retail companies (the retail industry) for four consecutive years.

In contrast, Naver, which has recently been expanding its e-commerce business, recorded 66,034.14 million won in information security investment and 154 dedicated staff members last year; Coupang’s investment and workforce were more than double those figures.

Coupang’s investment in information security and number of dedicated staff last year exceeded those of major conglomerates such as SK hynix(000660)(68.4 billion won and 172.2 employees) and HyundaiAutoever(307950)(39.2 billion won and 217.9 employees).

Coupang’s information security initiatives include: △ mandatory annual information security training for employees; △ events to raise employee awareness of information security; △ customized training for developers of personal information processing systems and personal information handlers; and △ security control assessments.

A retail industry official stated, “As Coupang’s business expands, we expect the company to continue increasing its investment in information security to strengthen its social responsibility and enhance public trust.”