Japan’s government agencies are racing to improve the country’s cybersecurity measures after more than 20 major companies disclosed cyberattacks in recent weeks, the Financial Times reported Friday (Oct. 9).
The companies said the attacks may have exposed tens of millions of pieces of customer data, according to the report.
Japan’s ruling party convened an emergency meeting of the National Cybersecurity Strategy Headquarters (NCSH) on Friday. The head of the NCSH, Masaaki Taira, said that the country is in “a state of emergency in cyber space,” according to the report.
The country’s Financial Services Agency said Friday that lenders should accept only forms of identification that contain ID chips, because one of the recent data leaks included a massive store of digital photos of driver’s licenses, per the report.
AP reported Friday that Japan’s government ministries will distribute to local public bodies and private companies a list of cybersecurity instructions prepared by the National Cybersecurity Office.
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The instructions recommend that organizations ensure updated security protection, use strong passwords, tighten cybersecurity measures and guard against attackers that pretend to be helping guard against cyberattacks, according to the report.
More than 500 cybersecurity incidents have been reported in Japan so far this year, meaning it is likely that there will be more cases in 2026 than the 473 reported in 2025 and the 503 reported in 2024, the report said, citing data from Yomiuri newspaper and cybersecurity firm Trend Micro.
Japan’s minister for digital transformation, Toshiharu Furukawa, told reporters this week, per the report: “Everyone must become vigilant about protecting your own information yourself.”
Friday’s Financial Times report said that cybersecurity experts believe Japan is vulnerable to hackers because of poor security practices among its population, a lack of digitalization among its companies and the ability of artificial intelligence to carry out sophisticated attacks, easily and inexpensively.
NBC News reported Friday on the surge of cyberattacks in Japan and said that experts attribute it in part to hackers’ use of AI.
The president of cybersecurity firm S&J Corp., Nobuo Miwa, said in the report: “The attackers have experienced a breakthrough that has rendered many of the old assumptions obsolete.”
SoftBank Group announced in June that it launched an AI-powered cybersecurity solution that it will offer to companies in Japan that support the country’s critical infrastructure.
“Attempted cyberattacks powered by advanced AI will become widespread,” SoftBank Group Chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son said at the time in a press release. “We’re determined to defend against them by using state-of-the-art AI.”
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