The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) has imposed a fine of 780 million won (US$582,089) on Hackers Language Institute Co., a major language teaching firm, for misleading advertising. According to the FTC, workers of the institute and two associated companies created 16 online communities and recommended their courses and books while concealing their link to the companies. Additionally, they manipulated the results of online surveys to rank Hackers the top local language institute and used the polls for advertisements. Moreover, employees posed as students and wrote complimentary comments about the institute’s programs and teachers.
Hackers Language Institute Co. provides online and in-person English courses mainly for TOEIC test takers and preparation programs for civil service examinations. The FTC declared that these promotion strategies constitute deceptive practices and ordered corrective measures, along with the fine. The FTC stated, “Managers of online communities intentionally hide and omit key information to mislead consumers and prevent their rational decision making. We will continue to closely monitor unfair online advertising practices and sternly deal with them.” This file photo taken June 27, 2023, shows an advertisement for Hackers Language Institute Co. at a bus stop in Seoul. (Yonhap)