Young Netflix Star Taking Action Against ‘Stalking Crimes’ and ‘Infringement of His Privacy’: Dex’s Management Issues Strong Statement

Popular YouTuber and Netflix star Dex, real name Kim Jin-young, is standing up amid a string of recent privacy invasions and stalking scenarios. In a statement released on Dec. 2 announcing a temporary hiatus of his YouTube channel, Dex’s management, Kick the Hurdle Studio, vowed to take “strong legal action without leniency” against what it described as “forms of stalking and defamatory activities that harm” the Single’s Inferno star, 29, and his family.

“We are aware of acts infringing on Dex’s privacy, commonly referred to as sasaeng behavior, identified through our internal monitoring and fan reports,” the statement, shared by Soompi, read in part. According to the statement, amid Dex’s rise to stardom, the actor has experienced fans “visiting his residence, following him during his personal time, and taking unauthorized photos or videos.” According to his management, Dex has also been the target of “false information and maliciously distorted rumors propagated by some netizens,” which have “caused mental harm to not only Dex but also his family.”

Urging “an immediate stop to all forms of stalking and defamatory activities,” Dex’s management said that in light of the concerning behavior, “we are announcing that we will take strong action against such behaviors, which constitute stalking crimes and an infringement of his privacy, and have caused significant distress and fear to our artist… kthdstudio will take strong legal action without leniency against those involved in stalking or spreading malicious rumors to protect the fundamental rights of our artists.”

Kick the Hurdle Studio also announced that beginning Dec. 10, it “will pursue legal action” against the “of unauthorized use of copyrighted content featuring Dex’s appearances in broadcast programs, including portrait rights, name rights, photos, and edited clips, both online and offline.” The agency said it has noticed “frequent cases” of unauthorized use of copyrighted content, and reminded “everyone that these works and rights are protected under copyright law, and any unauthorized usage may result in legal penalties.”

In the Dec. 2 statement, Dex’s management also announced that the star’s YouTube channel, DEX101, “will take an extended break.” The temporary hiatus, which began Monday, was described as “a step towards providing better content in the future,” Dex’s management noting that “over the past four years, despite his packed schedule, Dex has dedicated himself fully to the channel. However, despite recent breaks, we’ve concluded that more time is needed to restructure and improve the content.” His management requested “understanding” amid the hiatus and assured fans “that we will return with even higher-quality content after this break.”

Following a stint in the military that began in 2016, Dex rose to fame through the military-themed web show Fake Men 2 in 2020. He followed it with an appearance in MBC’s game survival show Bloody Game. More recently, Dex has become a breakout Netflix star, appearing on Season 2 of the hit dating show Single’s Inferno. He returned to Netflix in 2023 to compete on the Netflix Korean reality competition Zombieverse, which sees contestants attempting to outwit the undead during a zombie outbreak in Seoul, South Korea. His other credits include appearances on shows like Running Man, You Quiz on the Block, and Amazing Saturday, per his IMDb profile. He is also an active YouTuber, with his DEX101 YouTube channel boasting more than 900,000 followers.