This photo, provided by Yonhap News TV, shows the exterior of the Korea Fair Trade Commission in the central administrative city of Sejong. (Yonhap News TV)

South Korea's antitrust regulator said Sunday it has decided to impose a fine of 286 million won ($239,130) on the country's leading online education service provider Eduwill for misleading advertising.

Eduwill ran bus and subway advertisements between November 2018 and August 2021, in which the company claimed to rank first in the number of subscribers who passed exams, according to the Fair Trade Commission (FTC).

The company has provided online education services to people preparing for state exams to become civil servants or obtain certificates to land jobs.

The regulator said Eduwill's misleading ads could have made people believe that the company has continued to beat its rivals in all employment-related exams.

The FTC said it plans to take stern actions against similar business practices by online education service providers in a bid to root out their false advertising. (Yonhap)