Three suspects have been detained for allegedly using a computer program to jack up the number of "like" or "feel the same way" clicks for comments critical of the government on news stories carried by the online portal Naver.
They reportedly told police earlier that they obtained a rigging program and wanted to make it look like conservatives manipulated online opinions as they tried to test the program. The leader is a blogger, surnamed Kim, who goes by the alias "Druking."
The scandal has hit the ruling camp hard, especially in the wake of revelations that Rep. Kim Koung-soo of the ruling Democratic Party, considered one of the closest people to President Moon Jae-in, has known and communicated with Druking since 2016.
