Rape threat mistakenly flashed on department store's public electronic board

▲ This image of a rape threat on display on an electronic board of Lotte Department Store in central Seoul is captured from X. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

department store-rape threat

Rape threat mistakenly flashed on department store's public electronic board

SEOUL, Nov. 16 (Yonhap) -- A message threatening to rape women has been mistakenly displayed on an outdoor electronic board of a department store in central Seoul, prompting the store to file a police complaint, officials said Thursday.

According to the police and Lotte Department Store, a message reading, "I will rape all Korean women," went on display both in Korean and English on an electronic board on the exterior wall of the department chain's store in Seoul's Jung Ward at around 10 p.m. on Tuesday.

The electronic board was installed as part of the department store's Christmas celebration, allowing people to submit messages online for public display.

A Lotte employee soon brought down the message, but a person filed a report with the department store the following day, informing them of a photo of the incident being circulated online.

A Lotte official said that the electronic message board's screening system that filters out offensive and taboo language appears to have failed to block the message in question.

The department store is moving to file a complaint with the police, the official said.

Lotte has since suspended the public message event and is running Christmas images on the display.

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