Wave of cyber attacks in Japan: 86 incidents in September, and AI pointed as accelerator

SoftBank Corp., Daiwa Securities and Lawson are among the victims. Tokyo brings together its ministries and prepares business alerts, while experts accuse AI of lowering entry levels.

Japan recorded 86 cybersecurity incidents in September, about 18% more than in August and 37% more than in July, according to data from TrendAI. In the first nine months of the year, the country has already surpassed the 2025 total. Among the companies affected are SoftBank Corp., broker Daiwa Securities and convenience store chain Lawson.

The government steps up to the plate

The Minister of Digital Transformation, Toshiharu Furukawa, convened a meeting of the relevant ministries and agencies on Thursday. The National Bureau of Cybersecurity is preparing warnings for companies. For Nobuo Miwa, president of the Tokyo-based company S&J, the country is suffering from a real "carpet bombing": AI, which does not get tired, has broken down the language barrier that held back foreign attackers.

Investigations have not yet established the exact role of AI in each intrusion. But specialists describe attackers who automate the search for vulnerabilities such as writing phishing campaigns. South Korea, hit at the same time with nine banks affected, has imposed a twelve-point cybersecurity self-assessment on the financial sector.