An Account That Spread Misinformation About RIIZE's Seunghan Posts A Now-Deleted Public Apology

On November 22, KST, it was announced that RIIZE‘s Seunghan would enter an indefinite hiatus following the spread of private content of the artist.

In a statement posted to X and Weverse, SM Entertainment shared that Seunghan would go on hiatus as the group promoted as six. The company also promised that an investigation would be held and those who shared private content and misinformation about the artist would face legal action.

“Hello, this is SM Entertainment. We would like to inform you regarding RIIZE’s Seunghan.

Seunghan is reflecting on the disappointment and confusion he has caused, in relation to his private matters that were recently leaked and distributed through online channels. He apologizes to not only the group and his group members but also the fans.

Seunghan has been feeling responsible for what has happened, as well as mental burden. After serious consideration, he has expressed his desire to halt all activities for the sake of the group.

We have also decided that it was unreasonable for him to continue his activities under these circumstances. And so Seunghan’s activities will be indefinitely suspended with respect to his opinion that he did not want to cause any more damage to the team and the members.

Starting today (November 22), RIIZE will be active as six members, excluding Seunghan.

We understand that this is a sudden change, but it was decided after careful discussion with the artist himself. Hence, we ask for your kind understanding. We, too, feel a great sense of responsibility for the neglect on our part in terms of artist management, even if the issue at hand had occurred before debut. Once again, we sincerely apologize to the fans.

The photos and videos that are being leaked and distributed without permission are from private moments pre-debut, when Seunghan was a trainee. They were edited several times to intentionally cause misunderstandings.

In addition, the individual who leaked and distributed the videos and photos in question has committed serious defamation against the artist by spreading fabricated and false information that is different from the truth. They have used non-existent messenger conversations and other malicious methods to create and spread groundless information.

As soon as we became aware of this, we began gathering information and monitoring the situation to collect evidence and identify the source of the unauthorized leaks. We plan to file a report with the police this afternoon.

In addition, we are considering additional legal measures against the specific individuals for matters such as defamation of our artists through the unauthorized leak and dissemination of the the content and other illegal acts such as cyber-bullying and blackmailing.

We will not tolerate any secondary acts of harm, such as creating, spreading, and reproducing rumors related to our artists through additional posts. For the sake of the artists and the fans who love them, we will practice no leniency.

We will continue to do our best to protect our artists. Thank you.”

— SM Entertainment

Prior to this announcement, detective netizens had theorized about the true identity of one of the leakers and were hopeful they would face consequences soon.

Detective Netizens Provide Evidence That RIIZE Seunghan’s Exposer Is Actually A Disgraced YouTuber

Now, one of the accounts responsible for spreading misinformation about Seunghan has posted an apology.

On X, an account originally under the username @dzxr_drxzm posted tweets claiming to have information about Seunghan’s “bad personality” from one of his friends. The “information” posted quickly racked up more than 2 million views and spread to many corners of the internet.

On November 22, hours after SM Entertainment’s initial statement, @dzxr_drxzm changed their username to @bye_annyong and deleted their tweets about Seunghan.

They then posted an apology in Japanese and English, claiming to not want Seunghan to be removed from RIIZE and to have not expected their tweets to “matter.” Note: The OP likely used a translation service to share the English message, as they previously stated they did not understand.

“I admit that my misleading way of speaking was wrong.
To be honest, I never thought
my tweet would be this important.
What ordinary people tweeted somehow
was defamation of Seung Han, I didn’t think it was slanderous.
I’m sorry to Seung Han.
I should have deleted it earlier. I’m sorry.
However, please remember that those who speak ill of me are also slandering me. I am also one person.
Thank you for watching.

I want Seung Han to leave, I don’t want you to stop working at all. I didn’t take it for granted that the activity was suspended indefinitely this time.
I want Seung Han to be in Rise.
I don’t want to hear any more opinions about my remarks, so I’ll just say this.
I have been watching since Luciz. I remember Seung Han’s performance with Song Taro was so cool. He dances well, sings well, is handsome and I don’t recommend him, but I like him as a member. I am also a fan and admit my mistake. Even if you ask me to return Seung Han, it’s even more rough in my home country.
There are track demonstrations and hashtags. Therefore, I am sorry for my tweet, but I would like you to know that it is not because of this tweet alone. I apologize for the misunderstanding I made.”

— @bye_annyong