Information Security White Paper 2026
Overview
The Information Security White Paper 2026, published by the Information-technology Promotion Agency (IPA), covers trends in cyber threats and policy. It addresses legal reforms and AI-related measures, as well as damage to supply chains caused by increasingly sophisticated attacks and the development of systems to raise the level of security measures among small and medium-sized enterprises. Its subtitle is “A New Era of Cyber Defense: Prepare for the Double-Edged Evolution.”
Key points
- Following recommendations, legal reforms advanced the development of frameworks for public-private cooperation and neutralizing attack servers.
- AI measures are organized around three perspectives: ensuring safety, responding to attacks that misuse AI, and using AI for defense.
- Systems such as an evaluation scheme are being developed to ensure supply chain continuity and raise the level of security measures among small and medium-sized enterprises.
Overview
The subtitle of the Information Security White Paper 2026, published by the Information-technology Promotion Agency (IPA), is “A New Era of Cyber Defense: Prepare for the Double-Edged Evolution.”
The white paper covers cyber threats and policies in Japan and abroad, and its contents include “Introduction: Overview of Information Security in Fiscal Year 2025.”
Impact
Ransomware and targeted attacks have become more sophisticated through tactics such as the misuse of AI, causing extensive damage to supply chains in Japan and abroad.
Details
The “Recommendations for Enhancing Response Capabilities in the Field of Cybersecurity” were compiled in November 2024, and the Cybersecurity Capacity Strengthening Act and its related development act were enacted and promulgated in May 2025. Following this, efforts have advanced to strengthen public-private cooperation, use communications information, and develop the environment and systems needed to neutralize attack servers.
The Cybersecurity Strategy, adopted by Cabinet decision in December 2025, organized necessary initiatives in light of the impact of advances in and wider adoption of AI technology on the field. Following Anthropic’s announcement of a general-purpose AI model in April 2026, “Project YATA-Shield” was formulated to address the rapid evolution of AI.
The importance of business continuity across affected supply chains has been reaffirmed. To raise the level of security measures among the small and medium-sized enterprises that make up these chains, systems are being developed for the “Security Measures Evaluation System for Strengthening Supply Chains (SCS Evaluation System)” and the “Cybersecurity Support Service (New Type).”