Japan Declares State of Emergency Due to Ransomware Attacks on Companies, Not Just Japan

Japan declared a state of emergency on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, after dozens of companies became victims of cyberattacks, including ransomware targeting at least 53 companies, with authorities noting victims included manufacturing companies, construction companies, hospitals, and schools. Cybersecurity experts suspect that artificial intelligence is accelerating the scale and frequency of the intrusions, which have compromised millions of consumer records nationwide.

National Cyber Security Emergency Declared in Japan

The National Police Agency reported that at least 53 Japanese companies have fallen victim to ransomware incidents during the wave of breaches. While authorities have not publicly listed every affected enterprise, confirmed victims include secondhand retailer Bookoff Group and railway operator East Japan Railway Company. Those two firms alone disclosed that more than 6 million customer records may have been compromised. Separately, CNBC Indonesia noted that convenience store chain Lawson and car rental provider Times Car also suffered major security breaches, with Times Car leaks prompting financial regulators to warn commercial banks against accepting driver’s licenses as valid identification for opening new bank accounts.

Japanese officials and cyber defense analysts have characterized the current operational landscape as critical. The situation is already very critical, Japanese Cyber Security Toshiharu Furukawa stated, as cited by sources. Security specialists point to automated tools as a primary catalyst for the surge. Masaki Hiraoka, managing director for Northeast Asia at Blackpanda, explained that generative technology allows threat actors to execute complex attacks with minimal preparation, making smaller enterprise targets viable. Nobuo Miwa, president of Tokyo-based S&J Corp, noted that artificial intelligence enables foreign hackers to bypass traditional language barriers that previously hindered operations against Japanese infrastructure. AI never gets tired… I think Japan is basically being hit by a massive carpet bombing, Miwa told Reuters in remarks published on Tuesday, October 13, 2026.

Data compiled by TrendAI shows that Japan recorded a higher volume of security incidents in the first nine months of 2026 than during the entirety of the year 2026. Reinforcing that data, the National Police Agency reported a sharp increase in suspicious network scans designed to locate system vulnerabilities. During the first half of 2026, police sensors detected an average of 13,687 suspicious access attempts per IP address daily, representing a more than 50 percent increase compared to the same period in 2025. According to the National Police Agency, the United States accounted for the largest share of suspicious IP origins, followed by the Netherlands, Bulgaria, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Neighboring South Korea has faced parallel targeting, with several financial institutions and religious organizations hit by separate cyber incidents.

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