JYP Entertainment, the agency behind Stray Kids, has announced plans to take “civil and criminal measures” against individuals invading the group’s privacy.
In a statement posted to the group’s fancafe earlier today (November 11), the management agency explained that members of Stray Kids have continued to face repeated situations of privacy invasion, despite “several previous announcements” issued by JYP Entertainment regarding this issue.
아티스트 사생활 침해 행위 관련 안내https://t.co/zu3CMXqLhY
— Stray Kids (@Stray_Kids) November 11, 2022
“[S]erious mental and physical distress is being experienced not only by the artist, but also their neighbours who live in the same building,” JYP Entertainment said of the effect the privacy invasion cases have had on the group.
To avoid future incidents, JYP Entertainment announced that CCTV footage of people following the group’s members to their dorm room has been gathered and forwarded to the police, and that “all possible civil and criminal measures available” will be taken against individuals caught stalking the group’s members in the future, citing South Korea’s stalking-related laws.
The statement added that anyone caught stalking Stray Kids will also be blacklisted from the group’s fanclub activities.
“We notify you that we continue to have no intention of reaching a settlement or showing leniency in such cases,” the management agency wrote in their statement. “JYPE will continue to work harder for our artist’s safety and the protection of their rights.”
This isn’t the first time JYP Entertainment has issued a warning against people invading Stray Kids’ privacy. In 2020, the management agency released a list of acts considered “definite stalking and not affection”, which included following the group’s members during their personal time and attempting to visit the members’ private spaces.
A follow-up statement in 2021 added JYP Entertainment’s plans to file criminal complaints once CCTV evidence of individuals stalking the group’s members has been collated and forwarded to the police.