The island nation of Japan seems to be ramping up its cybersecurity efforts as international journalists warned of hacking involved in the Russia/Ukraine conflict.
Reuters reports on Japan’s progress, where Prime Minister Fumio Kishida wants to modernize how Japan handles potential threats. Legislation pending in the nation’s parliament would, as Reuters say, “tighten curbs on companies in security-sensitive sectors that procure overseas software.”
“The regulation would target companies in 14 industries critical to national security such as energy, water supply, information technology, finance and transportation,” writes an unnamed Reuters author. “Under the legislation, the government will also subsidize companies or projects that help build more resilient supply chains for key items such as semiconductors.”
Japan already has a cybersecurity law on the books. It’s reportedly the only one of its kind, and lays out some parameters for protecting domestic systems.
“The primary task of the Basic Cybersecurity Act is to ensure cybersecurity while also ensuring free distribution of information,” write Kazuyasu Shiraishi and Masaya Hirano at Lexology. “It is the purpose of the Basic Cybersecurity Act to move cybersecurity-related policies forward in a comprehensive and effective manner, and contribute to the creation of a more energetic and continuously developing economic society, consequently contributing to the national security of Japan.”
Reuters reporters suggest that Japan wants to “follow in the footsteps” of the United States in terms of using tools like commercial drones and security cameras to conduct surveillance aimed at system protections.
Now, there’s an extra impetus as nations worry about Russia’s incursion into Ukraine.
“(The pending bill) was released at a time of heightened concerns worldwide over the vulnerability of key infrastructure to cyberattacks, particularly in the wake of Russia’s assault on Ukraine,” write Kaori Kaneko and Leika Kihara.
What will nations do to prepare for more cyberwar? And does it have an impact on your portfolio?
