Japan will create a consultative body to spearhead collaborative efforts to prevent cyberattacks and resolve their impact.
Citing unnamed government sources, The Japan News reported that the planned cyber organization would be patterned after the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency’s Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative program.
Tokyo envisions the body functioning like the JCDC in the United States, where participants exchange cyber risk information and analysis. It wants the country’s critical infrastructure operators, including electricity, telco, water utility and railway companies, to participate in the program.
The program members will be required to report cyber incidents and damages, with the government promising to extend support for recovery efforts, sources said.
The government will establish the body under a restructured National Center for Incident Readiness and Strategy for Cybersecurity, which will serve as a new command post for collecting and analyzing information and customizing countermeasures for cyber breaches.
The report noted that the upcoming consultative body is a core element of Japan’s plan to promote public-private collaboration to address cyberthreats, particularly “hybrid warfare,” which combines armed attacks with cyber intrusions on crucial infrastructure.
The Japanese government is expected to convene a meeting in June to advance discussions on the plan.
Japan’s plan to establish a stronger cyber defense system comes as its representatives attended the fifth meeting of the ASEAN-Japan Cybersecurity Community Alliance in Cambodia, where participants discussed active regional partnerships to deter cyberattacks.