NCT Mark’s birthday event sparks controversy over lack of approval and damage to public property

SM Entertainment is under fire for their alleged mismanagement of NCT Mark's birthday event.

On August 2, Mark held a special treasure hunt event to celebrate his 26th birthday, hiding 26 of his personal items and stickers across three specific areas in Seoul. He explained how to find the stickers using maps he had shared for each location.

The designated spots for the hunt were all public areas, including Jamwon Han River Park, Seoul Forest, and Namsan Park near the Seoul City Wall Trail.

The hunt was scheduled to begin at 9 AM. However, many fans arrived earlier, only to find public workers already on-site.

The controversy arose when staff working at these public venues revealed that the event had not been coordinated with them in advance. One worker stated that "under the hot weekend weather," they, as staff who "have the responsibility to prevent the event from happening," believed "the people who planned this event must be out of their minds for damaging cultural property."

Fans, unaware that the event had not been approved beforehand, became concerned they wouldn’t be able to find the stickers and asked the workers if they could contact Mark's agency. However, the staff reportedly said that "that was ridiculous," as they did "not even know the phone number or any other details."

Online, fans expressed understanding toward the public workers, noting that there had been no prior agreement between SM Entertainment and the relevant public organizations. Many had simply assumed the event had been properly coordinated.

Because it hadn’t been, announcements had to be made over loudspeakers to address the situation, and public workers ultimately collected and discarded all the stickers.

After the situation unfolded at the first location, fans who were present began alerting others. Many expected SM to cancel the event immediately, but the hunt continued as planned at the remaining two sites.

Fans appeared to have found most of the stickers at the other locations. However, it was later discovered that the stickers used weren’t even removable, leaving marks on public property.

Despite the cancellation of the event at the first site and sticker residue remaining at other locations, the agency issued no apology. Instead, they simply posted a notice stating that all treasures had been found and that the event had ended.

SM's announcement reads:

"Congratulations! All clear! Mark's 26 treasures were all discovered as of 12:58pm, so we are letting you know that the event has ended. Thank you for participating in the 'Found & Marked' event despite the heat. Have a Happy Mark Day!"

Netizens shared shocked reactions on online forums, criticizing SM for "outrageously" mishandling the event.

Comments include:

"Are they out of their minds????"

"This is insane.."

"Such a huge inconvenience. What’s wrong with them? No one’s even apologizing—so rude."

"I don’t even understand why they’d plan a treasure hunt outdoors in this heat to begin with, and the lack of prior coordination is just absurd."

"It’s like they didn’t even have the bare minimum of common sense before going through with this..."

"It’s not like this is the agency’s first day in business. And they didn’t get approval for this? Then why not just do it at their own company building?"

"Remove the stickers completely and apologize to the management."

"Wait—these weren’t even clean-removal stickers...? I didn’t even think they’d overlook something that basic."

"What the hell is this with no prior coordination? Where did their common sense go? SM should go clean up all the sticker residue themselves—what a public nuisance."

"What are you doing putting stickers on public property? Clean up every trace, SM."

".....? Seriously, what is going on???"

"SM, are you out of your minds? You carried this out without coordination and even damaged property."

"They should be fined and made to pay for the damage to public property. What are they thinking? If they want to do something, do it at their own building."

"Running around outside in this weather? What kind of terrible event idea is that...?"

"I mean... even in public spaces, you should get approval and check beforehand. You can’t just do whatever you want... seriously..."

"What the hell are they doing..."

"Why didn’t they get permission?"

"Even a mom-and-pop shop wouldn’t do something this reckless."

"Nuisance. Do they think the whole world is Kwangya?"

"Seriously, I honestly hope they get fined. I want this to make the news big-time and embarrass them into coming to their senses."

"Doing it without permission and leaving marks—hope they get sued for all of it."

"Prior coordination should be a given.... How could a big agency like SM not handle that?ㅠ If they had just coordinated properly, it could’ve been an unforgettable event for both the fans and the idol who planned it. It’s such a shame in so many ways, including how they handled the situationㅠ"

"Honestly, the event itself was a mess. What are they doing in the middle of summer?"

"Why does an artist’s birthday justify all this..."

"This is nuts. The Seoul city government should lodge a complaint. At the very least, this deserves a civil suit at the municipal level, no?"

"Do they have no common sense?"

"What did the park staff do to deserve this?"

"The park staff went through so much, and in the middle of all that, some fan even insulted a public employee...; have they lost their minds lol"

"SM, do you think you own all of Korea or something?"

What are your thoughts?

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