Japan to launch ‘cyber rescue team’ as wave of hacking incidents hits businesses

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government has approved US$19 billion in additional spending to help Japanese households cope with rising living costs driven by the Iran war. — Reuters pic

First Published: Friday, 06 Nov 2026 4:36 PM MYT

TOKYO, Nov 6 — Japan will announce the launch of a “cyber rescue team” today in response to a sudden wave of hacking incidents, media reports said.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has vowed to compile an emergency package of measures after dozens of businesses reported unauthorised access in recent weeks to their systems and potential leaks of client data.

Hacks and data breaches have ballooned worldwide, with AI’s ability to find previously unknown ways to break into computer systems in the global spotlight.

Takaichi’s office confirmed her cabinet will hold a ministerial meeting on cybersecurity on Friday.

The policy package will include the creation of a “cyber rescue team” made up of both government and private sector experts, the Yomiuri Shimbun daily, Jiji Press and other media reported.

The government will set up a secretariat within the current fiscal year to coordinate the deployment of the rescue team when support needs are particularly acute, the reports said.

A “Top Gun Talent Team” of specialists will also be deployed this month to simulate attacks in a push to boost security, Jiji Press reported.

The measures will be “the first step towards transitioning to a society that meets the world’s top standards of cyber resilience”, top government spokesman Minoru Kihara told reporters on Thursday, without specifically mentioning the rescue team.

The package will be “one that prevents damage from occurring as much as possible, and, if damage does occur, is able to respond immediately”, he said.

Chinese artificial intelligence cybersecurity tool Artex was used in several recent hacks of Japanese companies, an information security arm of Japanese IT firm GMO Internet Group Inc said last month.

GMO Internet Group itself is among those that have come under attack. — AFP