Japan cyberattacks have prompted GMO Internet Group and car-sharing operator Park24 to offer payments to customers after separate incidents disrupted services and exposed personal data.
Key Takeaways
- GMO plans to pay customers 5,000 yen each and compensate losses from unauthorised access to its foreign exchange trading service.
- Park24 expects a 5.5 billion yen extraordinary loss from its response and compensation payments.
- Japan plans to create a team that will use AI to simulate cyberattacks and identify system weaknesses.
GMO faces an uncalculated earnings impact
GMO Internet Group CEO Masatoshi Kumagai said in an October 25 blog post that customers would be compensated for losses stemming from unauthorised access following an attack on its foreign exchange trading service. All customers would also receive 5,000 yen, or about $32, as an initial gesture of good faith.
The company said it could not yet calculate the earnings impact of the payments and loss compensation. It also plans to provide customers with a free alternative service for six months.
GMO said a party believed to be behind the attack demanded money and threatened to disclose company and customer information. The company said it would not comply and was coordinating its response with police and other authorities.
GMO shares fell nearly 14% to a four-month low, while Tokyo’s benchmark index rose 0.3%. The company had a market value of $2.6 billion at the previous Friday’s close.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| GMO customer payment | 5,000 yen per customer, plus compensation for losses from unauthorised access |
| GMO alternative service | Free for six months |
| Park24 customer payment | 3,000 yen following a personal data breach |
| Park24 expected extraordinary loss | 5.5 billion yen for attack responses and compensation |
Park24 payments follow personal data breach
Park24, which operates the Times car-sharing service, said on October 23 that it would pay customers 3,000 yen each following a personal data breach.
The company expects to book a 5.5 billion yen extraordinary loss for its response to the attack and compensation payments. It also said it would stop retaining identity document images after completing registration verification.
Japan cyberattacks draw government response
Japan said on October 23 that it would establish a team to simulate cyberattacks using AI to identify weaknesses in technology systems. The announcement came as organisations sought to manage risks from critical vulnerabilities in the PHP programming language.
Government and company websites in Japan, Europe and elsewhere went offline after the vulnerabilities were disclosed, prompting millions of hacking attempts. GMO said it had asked the Japanese government to apply cyberdefence measures in response to the attack.
TrendAI recorded 723 cybersecurity incidents in Japan from the start of the year through October 20, exceeding the annual totals for both 2025 and 2024. Satoshi Nagano, president of ESET Japan, said reports may reflect both the threats organisations face and greater visibility into incidents that previously went undetected, underinvestigated or undisclosed.
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