Japan on Alert for Cyber Attacks on Critical Infrastructure

ILLUSTRATION UNSPLASH/aggy

JAKARTA - The Japanese government will issue warnings to operators of critical infrastructure that are at risk of cyber attacks using advanced artificial intelligence (AI) tools.

The warning was revealed from the countermeasures prepared by the Japanese Government on Monday.

The effort was made because Claude Mythos, the latest AI model developed by the US startup company Anthropic, has sparked concerns about exploitation to attack various systems, due to its extraordinary ability to identify system vulnerabilities.

The Japanese government is also working hard to build a framework through the National Cyber Security Office to respond to and prevent such attacks.

Japanese Digital Minister Hisashi Matsumoto, who is in charge of cybersecurity, received special instructions from Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi since the beginning of May to prepare measures against potential cyberattacks amid the increasing threat posed by AI.

The countermeasures were drafted in a meeting on Monday, attended by Matsumoto and senior officials from various government agencies, including the National Police Agency, the Ministry of Industry, and the Ministry of Infrastructure.

Minister Matsumoto warned that the improper use of AI could dramatically increase the scale and speed of cyber attacks.

Therefore, according to him, the Japanese government needs to immediately design a response to the threat because it is an urgent problem to be overcome.