K-pop
BIGHIT MUSIC seeks US court order to identify alleged BTS album leaker
BIGHIT MUSIC has asked a California court to force Elon Musk's X Corp. to reveal the user behind an account accused of leaking BTS’ album ARIRANG ahead of its release.
BIGHIT MUSIC is taking legal action in the United States to uncover the identity of an anonymous X user accused of leaking BTS’ latest album ARIRANG before it arrived on March 20.
The label, a subsidiary of HYBE, has filed an application in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California requesting permission to subpoena Elon Musk's X Corp. for information that could identify the person behind the account.
According to the filing, the account operated under the display name “BTS ARIRANG LEAK” with the username @jwngkcck and allegedly shared unreleased tracks, lyrics, concept art and album cover images in early March.
BIGHIT said the leak damaged its promotional plans and undermined the impact of the group’s first full‑length album in six years.
The label argued that BTS’ releases require extensive planning and secrecy to maximise their global reach, and that unauthorised leaks “destroy excitement and anticipation” while causing economic and reputational harm.
BIGHIT intends to pursue legal action in South Korea but says it cannot proceed without identifying the user, something it cannot compel X to provide through South Korean courts.
The petition was filed under a statute that allows foreign companies to seek evidence from U.S. entities for use in overseas legal proceedings.
BIGHIT also noted the urgency of the request, as South Korean telecom providers routinely delete user data after 90 days.
If approved, the subpoena would require X to hand over access logs and time‑zone data linked to the account from January 1 2026 onwards.
HYBE has used the same legal route before, successfully unmasking another anonymous X account last year that had posted thousands of allegedly defamatory messages about the company and its artists.
The leak isn't affecting ARIRANG's staying power on the charts, with the collection having spent a third week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
