SK Telecom reported a consolidated revenue of KRW 17.099.2 trillion — down 4.7% year-on-year for fiscal year 2025
In sum – what to know:
Cybersecurity fallout – The breach hit nearly SK Telecom’s entire subscriber base, driving subscriber losses, lower revenue, and sharp profit declines alongside remediation and restructuring costs.
Rebuilding trust – Management pointed to the Accountability and Commitment Program — including customer relief measures and waived cancellation fees — as part of its effort to stabilize the MNO business and restore long-term competitiveness.
AI infra for profitability – SK Telecom is leaning on AI data center growth, Seoul expansion plans, and wider AI use across marketing and network operations to restore earnings momentum.
SK Telecom’s 2025 was defined by fallout from a major cybersecurity attack that compromised sensitive SIM-related data for roughly 26.9 million to 27 million customers — about the entirety of SK Telecom’s subscriber base at the time. This led to a $97 million fine by the South Korean Government and a reported 90% drop in operating profit for the third quarter. This impact lingered into year-end. Consolidated revenue totaled KRW 17.099.2 trillion, down 4.7% year-on-year for fiscal year 2025.
On the investor call, SK Telecom’s CFO Jong-seok Park cited subscriber losses following the attack, along with subsidiary sales and the implementation of the Accountability and Commitment Program, a post-breach effort that included customer relief benefits and waived cancellation fees.
Park framed 2025 as both a reset and a reflection point for the company: “The cybersecurity incident and its subsequent developments also led us to a period of careful reflection, realizing that understanding and innovating on customer value, which is the essence of our business, is a prerequisite for a sustainable future.”
Operating income and net income were also negatively impacted by the incident, with the former dropping 41.1% year-over-year to KRW 1.073.2 trillion, and the latter falling by 73% year-over-year mainly due to penalty payments.
“The financial impact of the cybersecurity incident persisted into the fourth quarter and substantial costs were incurred in the process of business portfolio restructuring,” said Park, adding that SK Telecom decided not to pay out quarterly dividend for the fourth quarter as a result.
Back to profitability with AI
With its core mobile business under pressure, SK Telecom is increasingly leaning on AI infrastructure as its next growth driver. According to Park, the company remains focused on establishing a strong foundation for its AI business. He pointed to a two-digit growth trend in its AI data center business revenue, citing an increase in utilization rates of Gasan and Yangju data centers and the acquisition of Pangyo data center. “This year, we aim to accelerate growth by actively developing business expansion opportunities through business scale-up with an additional data center in the Seoul metropolitan region,” he continued.
The company also aims to enhance the efficiency and productivity of its AI agent business and its B2B AI business to produce “meaningful outcomes,” as well as strengthen its MNO’s business “in all business areas,” focusing primarily on customer value “to restore profitability by producing AI business results driven by AI data centers.”
Park added that the company plans to embed AI across its core telecom operations as well: “We will utilize AI across the telecom business, including marketing and network, to boost productivity and improve profitability.”
