Finance Minister Katayama’s Post-Cabinet Press Conference, October 23, 2026
Overview
Finance Minister Katayama said that, in response to the PHP vulnerability, many financial institutions had proactively suspended their systems and had made progress in applying patches. She said the Financial Services Agency had established a public-private council in April and, in May, had agreed on response procedures that included proactive system shutdowns as an option, then called on financial institutions and others to follow them. She said these steps had helped make the response relatively smooth and served as an early rehearsal. The government will continue working with relevant organizations and encourage the financial sector to take necessary action. Plans for winter subsidies on electricity and gas bills and for gasoline subsidies have not been decided; she said the government would respond if the Prime Minister sets a policy or gives instructions. Regarding support for the content industry, she said the government would draw on lessons from the past, consider issues such as the 5W1H and funds as part of one of 17 important fields, and aim to prepare a budget that the public can accept.
Key points
- She said that a response policy including proactive system shutdowns as an option in advance had been significant to the response this time.
- She said plans for winter electricity and gas bill subsidies and gasoline subsidies had not been decided.
- For support of the content industry, the government aims to prepare a budget acceptable to the public, drawing on lessons from the past.
Overview
The press conference included questions on the response to the PHP vulnerability, followed by winter electricity and gas costs, gasoline subsidies, and budget planning for support of the content industry.
The minister said she had heard that the website had been restored relatively early and that almost all websites of members of the Diet had also been restored.
Impact
The minister said subsidy levels would be set in light of people’s living conditions and to avoid affecting economic activity.
Details
In responding to the PHP vulnerability, many financial institutions proactively suspended their systems in light of advisories from the NCO and others. The Financial Services Agency established a public-private council on AI threats in April and, in May, agreed on response procedures that included proactive shutdowns as an option when patching was necessary, then requested that financial institutions and others take short-term action.
The minister said the response this time was relatively smooth and had been significant as an early rehearsal. She said widely used systems require reliable responses and that risks could rise further, and expressed her intention to work with relevant organizations to encourage the financial sector to respond.
She said the government would respond to subsidy matters if the Prime Minister sets a policy or gives instructions, but no policy had been decided at this time. On support for the content industry, she said there was broad agreement on drawing lessons from the past and that proposals had come from government ministries and private-sector leaders. She said the government would also take account of lessons concerning the 5W1H and funds raised in the “Strong and Prosperous Japan” investment framework, with the aim of preparing a plan the public can accept.