Ko Young-wook, a former member of the group Roo'Ra, returns home after being questioned at Seodaemun Police Station in Seoul, Jan. 3, 2013. Yonhap

Former Roo'Ra member Ko Young-wook, who served time for sexually assaulting and molesting minors, has protested the shutdown of his YouTube channel, prompting YouTube to clarify the reason for its decision.

Ko took to his X account on Aug. 23, writing, "It seems my YouTube channel was shut down overnight. I find it questionable that YouTube would apply a non-existent rule to an individual just because they are a former convict, especially when I haven't uploaded harmful content."

Earlier this month, on Aug. 5, Ko had announced the launch of his YouTube channel, "Go! Young-wook GoDog Days," saying, "I started this channel impulsively to escape a lethargic routine where I felt like I was aging miserably at home."

Ko Young-wook / Yonhap

The first video, featuring his pet dog, surpassed 300,000 views within 10 days. However, following a barrage of user reports, the channel was shut down by YouTube in about two weeks.

Regarding the closure, YouTube told the Hankook Ilbo, "The 'Go! Young-wook' channel was terminated in accordance with our Creator Responsibility guidelines, which prohibit behavior that harms the YouTube community, even if it occurs outside the platform. The uploader is no longer allowed to own or create any other YouTube channels."

YouTube's Creator Responsibility guidelines state, "If a creator's conduct, on or off YouTube, harms our users, community, employees or ecosystem, we take action to protect the community."

Serious violations that cause significant harm to the community can lead to actions beyond standard enforcement, including the removal of monetization capabilities.

YouTube Korea previously applied these guidelines to suspend monetization for some "cyber wreckers," YouTubers who profit from exposing negative issues, like Caracula (real name Lee Sae-wook) and Gujeyeok (Lee Jun-hee).

In response, Ko filed an appeal with Google, which operates YouTube, on Monday, contesting the channel deletion. YouTube will review the appeal to decide whether to restore the channel.

Ko also faced a similar issue in November 2020 when his Instagram account was shut down shortly after its creation. Instagram prohibits individuals convicted of sex crimes from owning accounts, citing concerns that such individuals could incite copycat crimes or attract new victims if they regain popularity on social media.

Ko was sentenced to two years and six months in prison in 2013 for sexually assaulting and molesting three minors and was released after serving his full term in 2015. He was also ordered to wear an electronic monitoring device for three years and to register as a sex offender for five years.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.