A string of violent crimes — from the killing of a man's mother-in-law and the abduction of his wife in Seoul's Songpa district to a stabbing rampage in Incheon — has heightened public anxiety in South Korea. Online, more consumers are searching for self-defense products, and posts sharing tips on what to do during a knife attack are spreading. Even emergency whistles priced at 1,000 won have sold out, a sign of growing interest in everyday safety items.
The click index for "self-defense products" reached 100 on Oct. 14, according to NAVER Datalab's Shopping Insight data released on the 18th. That was the highest reading in the past month and about 5.3 times the level of 19 recorded on the 10th.
The index rose from 23 on the 11th to 29 on the 12th, then surged to 77 on the 13th, the day of the Incheon stabbing attack. It hit 100 the following day and stayed high at 92 on the 15th. By contrast, the index had ranged between 14 and 41 from Sept. 15 through Oct. 12. The successive violent crimes appear to have driven the interest in self-defense gear.
On NAVER's shopping platform, consumers focused on a range of items including pepper sprays, whistles, personal alarms and stab-resistant vests. Some products drew a steady stream of wish-list additions. One compact pepper spray, easy to carry, had more than 18,000 customer reviews.
Low-cost emergency items are also drawing attention. On the 18th, a 1,000-won "emergency LED whistle set" was listed as temporarily out of stock for parcel delivery on the Daiso online mall. Interest has extended beyond expensive self-defense devices to inexpensive household goods.
Online Posts Share Tips on Surviving Knife Attacks
Posts on how to prepare for a knife attack have been circulating on online communities and social media. One post titled "How to prevent the Incheon stabbing incident" advised wrapping an arm around the neck for protection and using the torso to push an attacker off balance. The author also uploaded photographs demonstrating the positions.
The post also suggested wearing a backpack on the front of the body to shield the stomach and solar plexus. Readers responded with comments such as "I wish there were self-defense products that could protect the neck" and "What should you do if you don't have a bag?" While some shared information on self-defense products, others wrote that it was disheartening to have to learn such things.
The advice in the post, however, is circulating informally online and should be distinguished from verified safety guidelines.
Ten Attacked in Incheon, Knife Threat in Gwangju
Violent crimes and knife threats have continued. On the 13th, a stabbing rampage at a commercial building in Incheon left 10 people attacked and eight of them injured. On the 15th, a woman in her 50s was arrested in front of a shop in Gwangju's Buk district after threatening the store owner, a woman in her 60s, with a kitchen knife.
Earlier, on the 11th, a man in his 20s surnamed Kim killed his mother-in-law and abducted his wife in Seoul's Songpa district. As violent crimes mount, public wariness has grown, and online interest in buying self-defense products and learning how to respond to attacks continues.