Girl group member Lee Chaeyoung says she has 'never smoked' after photo sparks false smoker image

A single social media photo has repeatedly proven enough to brand a public figure with an unwanted digital label. Fromis_9 member Lee Chaeyoung is the latest example, saying an e-cigarette that appeared incidentally in one of her photos cemented a "smoker" image she has struggled to shake.

Lee and fellow Fromis_9 member Lee Nakyung appeared on the YouTube channel "Ibman Yeolmyeon" in an episode released Thursday, taking part in a lie-detector talk segment.

When host Lee Yongjin asked whether there was anything she wanted to clear up through the lie detector, Lee Chaeyoung answered without hesitation: "I am a non-smoker."

"When you search my name, cigarettes come up," she said. "I have never smoked in my life."

Lee said the rumor began when an e-cigarette happened to appear in the background of a photo she posted on social media.

"The e-cigarette was far away from me and it was pink, so I didn't even know it was an e-cigarette," she said. "But so many people just accepted it as fact without any doubt and took me for a smoker."

She added that some people even said it would be strange if she did not smoke, and that she had received sponsorship offers from e-cigarette companies. "I really do not smoke," she said.

When the lie detector returned a "non-smoker" result, Lee appealed for the associated search term to be removed. "I have never smoked once in my entire life," she said. "It made it even more unfair that so many people never even questioned it."

Lee debuted as a member of Fromis_9 in 2018 through the Mnet talent show "Idol School."

Cases in which a single photo or short clip spreads online stripped of its context — hardening into perceived fact — are far from rare. Experts note that in an environment where social media and search services are part of daily life, associated search terms and online perceptions formed around a person can linger long after that person has offered a clarification, and urge users to consider the source and context of information rather than accepting unverified claims as truth.