SEVENTEEN's The8 has unfortunately found himself at the center of a distressing situation, as reports emerge detailing the invasion of his privacy and unfounded accusations of wrongdoing. Amidst his busy schedule, which frequently takes him to various locations, including China, The8 has been subjected to unwanted attention, particularly during his recent airport appearances.
In a troubling incident captured on video, a netizen at the airport not only spotted The8 but proceeded to record his private
passport details
, accompanied by inappropriate commentary suggesting a desire to expose personal information.
The clip, which has since garnered attention, abruptly ends as The8 gestures for the recording to cease, clearly uncomfortable with the invasion of his privacy.
As if this intrusion wasn't distressing enough, matters escalated when a popular online account shared another video of The8 at the airport, falsely accusing him of desecrating a shrine in Japan. The poster stated, "At Shanghai Pudong International Airport. The idiot that peed at the Yasukuni Shrine went back [to China]", as quoted by Koreaboo. The accusation, devoid of any evidence, sparked outrage among netizens, who swiftly came to The8's defense, denouncing the baseless claims.
In response to these incidents, Xing Can Sheng Shi Entertainment, the Chinese division representing The8, issued a statement condemning the dissemination of false information and the violation of his privacy rights. The statement emphasized the illegality of sharing personal identification documents and called for the immediate cessation of spreading false narratives about the artist. The agency's full statement read:
“In recent days, our company noticed certain netizens have continuously posted false messages targeting our artist Mr. Xu Minghao. They even took certain parts of videos and spread them after adding inappropriate interpretations, seriously slandering his character. To avoid the continuous spread of the false messages, which are making the public doubt and misunderstand Mr. Xu Minghao, we are making the following statement:
Mr. Xu Minghao’s personal identification documents are personal and private information, and are protected by the law. No one is allowed to invade another person’s private information through leaks, disclosures, or other means. The act by the relevant parties who purposely filmed and exposed the artist’s identification document after immigration at the airport is a violation.
Certain netizens have taken things out of context, twisted the truth, and posted false messages. They should immediately stop posting and spreading them, and immediately delete all false contents.
In regards to the improper acts and messages that violate our artist’s privacy and reputation rights, our company has been continuously gathering related evidence and reserves the right to take legal action against relevant parties. At the same time, our company would like to remind the public to maintain public order, respect and protect other people’s privacy and reputation, and together create and protect the civilized and friendly society and online communities”.
While the statement serves as a formal response to the disturbing events, there remains a demand for more decisive action to address the harm caused to The8's reputation and well-being.
English (US) ·