"I booked this for an anniversary, and I am very satisfied." "They examined the affected area thoroughly, and the treatment went well." These reviews for restaurants and clinics posted on portal sites were all fabricated and false.

The Busan Metropolitan Police Agency has apprehended 24 individuals, including the head of an advertising agency, on charges of writing fake positive reviews using stolen accounts purchased via Telegram to boost search rankings on portal sites.

They are accused of writing approximately 28,000 fake reviews on internet platforms such as Naver from 2020 to this year, pocketing 1.9 billion won from advertisers.

Police investigations revealed that advertisers provided receipts left behind by actual customers to the advertising agency to request the creation of fake reviews.

In the case of lodging establishments, the advertiser would lower the cost of a one-night stay to 1,000 won, allowing the agency to make the payment and then post a fake review.

[Interview] Lee Gyeong-min / Chief of Cyber Investigation Unit, Busan Metropolitan Police Agency: "They would set the price very low, such as 1,000 won or at least 5,000 won, and then make a reservation. After the reservation was made, they would change the price back to the normal rate."

One of the individuals involved even wrote 3,600 reviews in a single month.

A software company was also involved in the crime, having developed and provided the advertising agency with IP-masking programs to bypass portal security systems, as well as various macro programs.

Police determined that they generated approximately 1.9 billion won in criminal proceeds through these methods.

The police have referred the actual operator of the advertising agency, a man in his 30s, to the prosecution under detention and have taken measures to preserve 1.785 billion won of the criminal proceeds for forfeiture before indictment.

Reported by Kim su-yun | Video by Jeong Gyeong-mun | Video Editing by Lee Hong-myeong | Footage courtesy of Busan Metropolitan Police Agency | Produced by SBS Digital News