A series of disgraceful setbacks - largest-ever technology recall and imprisonment of the de facto head over bribery charges - cost South Korea’s top company Samsung Electronics Co. dearly in its international image.

According to industry insiders on Tuesday, Samsung Electronics ranked 89th in the 2017 Global corporate social responsibility (CSR) RepTrak 100 announced by Reputation Institute, a private global consulting firm based in Boston, the United States.

Samsung Electronics this year plunged to the 89th spot with just 64.5 points out of 100 from the 20th place with 69.8 points last year. It was the biggest on-year drop among the top 100 companies surveyed. The Korean tech giant had remained in top 30 in the ranking since 2013. It ranked 26th with 66.5 points in 2013, 16th with 68.3 points in 2014 and 20th with 68.83 points in 2015.

The recent analysis was based on over 170,000 ratings from interviews with the public in the 15 largest economies and scored performance in citizenship, governance and workplace dimensions.

The company’s steep fall in reputation comes after the arrest of its chief Jay Y. Lee for bribery and other charges in a massive corruption scandal that removed Korea’s former President park Geun-hye. Seoul Central District Court last month sentenced Lee to five years in prison. Industry observers also cited the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco as another possible reason for the company’s tainted reputation.

Related to the recent ranking, the American business magazine Forbes said Samsung’s reputation was hit by “combustion problems” with its Galaxy Note 7 smartphone model and “bribery scandal” that its vice chairman Lee ensnared.

Meanwhile, Danish toy company Lego topped this year’s roster of top CSR companies, followed by Microsoft and Google. Among the top 10 companies are Walt Disney Company, BMW Group, Intel, Robert Bosch, Cisco Systems, Rolls-Royce Aerospace and Colgate-Palmolive.

Apple Inc., who held seventh place last year, has fallen to 49th after it refused the White House’s request to unlock the iPhone to assist law enforcement during a shooting investigation last year.

Among the Korean companies, LG held the 76th place with 65.9 points, and Hyundai Motor 92nd with 63.9 points.

By Kim Dong-eun

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]