Japan launches financial task force to counter AI-driven cybersecurity threats
Japan will establish a task force to address cybersecurity risks in its financial system following concerns about vulnerabilities exposed by Anthropic's Mythos AI model, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama announced Friday.
The Financial Services Agency, Bank of Japan, National Cybersecurity Office, the country's three largest banks, and Japan Exchange Group agreed to the measure at a meeting this week. Katayama said the group views the threat as immediate.
"I told the meeting that this is a crisis that is already at hand, and similar concerns were also voiced by the financial industry," she said.
What triggered the response
Anthropic disclosed that a preview version of Mythos identified "thousands" of major vulnerabilities across every major operating system and web browser. Security experts warn the model can find and exploit previously unknown vulnerabilities faster than companies can patch them, potentially accelerating cyberattacks in banking and other sectors.
No breaches linked to the model have been reported to date. Regulators in Asia, Europe, and the United States have already warned banks to review their defenses.
Why financial systems face particular risk
Japan's financial infrastructure operates with high interconnectedness and real-time transaction processing. This design means problems spread faster than in other sectors.
Katayama said a cyberattack could "immediately spill over into market disruptions and undermine confidence" across the system. The financial sector often relies on decades-old technology layered with newer systems, creating complex attack surfaces.
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