**Japan's Cyber Chief Warns Nation Still Behind on Cybersecurity**

Japan's new cyber chief, National Cyber Director Yoichi Iida, has sounded the alarm about his country's lagging cybersecurity capabilities. In an interview with Bloomberg News at a recent cybersecurity conference in Tokyo, Iida warned that Japan still trails behind the US and Europe in defending against cyber threats.

"We have our intention to improve our capability, but it's just started," Iida said candidly. His comments come on the heels of a string of high-profile breaches that have highlighted Japan's vulnerabilities to cyber attacks. A crippling ransomware attack halted operations at Asahi Group Holdings Ltd., while Askul Corp. suffered a breach that disrupted its e-commerce platform. Nikkei Inc. also reported a virus infection that may have exposed employee and business partner information.

The severity and volume of cyberattacks against Japan have increased significantly, with an internet-connected device facing some form of malicious communication every 13 seconds, Iida noted at the CYDEF 2025 conference. Smaller Japanese companies remain the most exposed due to a lack of resources, but larger firms are far from immune, he emphasized.

"I would not be surprised if I found some hole or some mistake even by the major companies," Iida said bluntly. Japan's goal is to raise its level of cybersecurity to at least the standard of advanced western nations such as the US and European countries. To achieve this, the country has adopted an "active cyber-defense" law that allows authorities to seek to neutralize the source of malicious cyberactivity and publicize information about attackers to deter further activity.

Cybersecurity has been identified as one of the priority investment areas under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's administration. Iida's position was newly created in July to coordinate national strategy, and Tokyo has stepped up cooperation with allies as state-linked hacking campaigns intensify. In September, Japan joined other nations in releasing an advisory about an alleged Chinese state-sponsored cyber espionage group known as "Salt Typhoon" that they said was targeting telecommunications companies and their customers.

Iida noted that while China, Russia, and North Korea appear to be the source of many attacks, it is often unclear who is directing them. Despite heightened tensions between Japan and China over Taiwan in recent months, Iida said there hadn't been any noticeable change in cyberattacks originating from China.

One of the biggest challenges facing Japan is building up human resources to boost both public and private cybersecurity, Iida acknowledged. There also needs to be much more awareness of simple steps to improve security, including the use of multi-factor authentication. "Even a simple action could prevent a cyberattack — like changing the password," he emphasized.

Photograph: Japan's National Cyber Director Yoichi Iida; photo credit: Alastair Gale/Bloomberg

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