Japanese firms compensate customers as cyberattacks disrupt services and prompt emergency government response

GMO Internet Group, a major Japanese online financial services provider, said it will compensate customers for losses caused by unauthorised access to its foreign exchange trading service. All customers will also receive 5000 yen (about $45) as a goodwill gesture. CEO Masatoshi Kumagai said the company received a money demand from a party believed to be behind the attack, along with a threat to release company and customer information. GMO said it will not pay and is working with police and other authorities. It did not link the incident to PHP flaws.

The attacks come as government and company websites in Japan, Europe and elsewhere went offline last week. The disclosure of critical vulnerabilities in the PHP programming language reportedly prompted millions of hacking attempts. Japan plans to set up a team that uses AI to simulate cyberattacks and find weaknesses in technology systems. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the government intends to compile an emergency package of cybersecurity measures by sometime next week.

Experts say AI is helping attackers automate tasks from scanning for software vulnerabilities to crafting phishing campaigns, making cybercrime faster, cheaper and harder to detect. Kumagai warned that "the internet itself is now starting to break down" and urged the government to apply its new cyberdefence system, which could include attacking hostile servers to neutralise threats.