Japanese government officials said Monday that Japan’s confidential diplomatic cables were leaked in 2020 after Chinese hackers attacked Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
origin Said Kyodo News The cyber attack reportedly occurred during the last term of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. This incident came as a huge shock to the Abe administration, which recognized that Japan’s cyber defenses needed improvement and sought advice from the US government.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi declined to confirm whether the hackers had leaked confidential information when asked about the matter. Both the original source and Lin were very reluctant to discuss exactly what information was exposed or what happened to the leaked documents.
The diplomatic cable was reportedly sent using an encrypted Internet Protocol Virtual Private Network (IP-VPN). The ability of hackers to penetrate such secure communication systems is extremely troubling.
Kyodo News Several Japanese institutions have suffered embarrassing cyberattacks in recent years, including the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and the National Incident Response Center for Cybersecurity, which apparently involved Chinese military hackers. He pointed out that the strategic center was also included. lurking Undetected in the system for almost a long period of time 9 Months, Japan has pledged to increase its cybersecurity budget by 1,000 percent over five years after the infiltration of its security agencies was made public.
These data breaches have left lawmakers concerned about the poor state of Japan’s cyber defenses, but the government’s reluctance to do anything that could be seen as a violation of privacy rights has prompted major security improvements. attempts have been thwarted. For this reason, Japan was reluctant to give U.S. cybersecurity experts access to sensitive systems to help investigate Chinese hacking.
slightly different issue broached by japanese news On Monday, while discussing the Foreign Ministry hack, he said the United States is “hesitant to share defense-related information with Japan” because Japan’s cybersecurity is in such a poor state. This includes information that may be useful in strengthening Japan’s Internet security.
japanese news The Japanese are particularly lagging in “active cyber defense,” which refers to proactive efforts to monitor cyberspace for imminent threats and initiate preemptive action against potential hackers. It pointed out.
The Abe administration reportedly learned of the Foreign Ministry information leak in 2020. Gen. Paul Nakasone, then head of the U.S. National Security Agency, traveled to Tokyo and spoke directly to Japanese officials about the attack.
“China has dealt us a big blow. We have worked hard to improve, but it is still not enough,” a senior Japanese government official said with a sigh.
