Government to offer cybersecurity for infrastructure managers; Hospitals and water companies must be protected against malware

According to government sources, the government will start offering a free cybersecurity service to medical institutions and other critical infrastructure operators, as well as universities and research institutes.

The service aims to prevent connections to malicious websites, which contain malware designed to steal information. The government aims to create a system to protect the infrastructure that directly affects people’s lives.

The government has deemed it necessary to take new measures against cyber attacks as it becomes increasingly wary of attacks aimed at stealing information related to advanced technologies.

The National Center of Incident Readiness and Strategy for Cybersecurity (NISC) has allocated 4.93 billion yen in this fiscal year’s budget to strengthen cybersecurity in government agencies and other agencies. NISC plans to implement the intended free cybersecurity service as part of specific measures.

Although critical infrastructure operators, universities and research institutes have taken measures to defend against cyber attacks, the government will provide better performing services to increase the overall level of cyber security in Japan, which is said to be vulnerable. With these measures, the government also wants to prevent the outflow of advanced technology to external parties.

The planned service, called the Protective Domain Name System or Protective DNS, is already being rolled out in the United States, the United Kingdom and other countries. If a user accidentally connects to a phishing site that steals personal information via a URL sent by email or other means, the system blocks the connection or issues an alert. A warning is also displayed if a user tries to download a suspicious file that likely contains malware.

The service is expected to be provided to infrastructure operators such as medical institutions and water utilities, where disruptions would have a significant impact on people’s lives. It will also likely be offered to universities, research institutes and independent administrative institutions engaged in advanced technological research. The government, through the Cabinet, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology and other relevant ministries and agencies, will call for the use of the service.

Information about malicious sites obtained through the use of the service will be collected and analyzed by NISC and will also be used to further improve the capabilities of the service.

In recent years, there have been a series of cyber attacks on medical institutions, universities and research institutes. In March, a medical facility in Kagoshima Prefecture was attacked and forced to curtail some of its medical services.